[DieHard the Hunter]

Here’s a dumb foreigner question: don’t you have the powers of Citizen’s Arrest in the United States? And if so, why isn’t the answer to Illegal Aliens just as simple as all of you Citizen’s Arresting them on sight? Isn’t being an Illegal Alien in the US technically a serious crime in and of itself?

(To say nothing of Using a Document Falsely for Pecuniary Advantage, as is the case with stolen Social Security Cards)

And don’t you have the powers of conducting a private Criminal Prosecution?

(If the answers to these questions is “no”, then perhaps you need to use your Second Amendment to get your Gummint to give you these valuable rights back!)

[Lurker]

The powers of Citizens Arrest, at least in my State, apply only to State laws which reach the Felony level meaning the offense is punishable by more than one year in prison.

Here's something that most folks don't know. At least in my State, the only real difference between a sworn Police Officer and a 'civilian' is that the Officer can make an arrest for a misdemeanor.

So I suppose if one had evidence of 'Felony Identity Theft', which is a crime in IL, then one could make the arrest.

Some jurisidictions are decidedly unfriendly to those making Citizens Arrests.

Chicago springs to mind...

L

[TKDietz]

“Isn’t being an Illegal Alien in the US technically a serious crime in and of itself?”

Actually, no. It's the illegal entry that is a criminal offense, and it's not a particularly serious offense. It's just a misdemeanor I think punishable by something like a max of six months in jail. Illegal reentry after being deported is a much more serious, especially if the person was deported as a “criminal alien” after being convicted of a crime. These guys are looking at up to 20 years in a federal pen with no parole if they come back in after being deported.