ARREST, in civil cases, is a legal re straint of a person charged with some debt to an individual : and, in criminal cases, for some crime against the state; and it is executed in pursuance of the command of some court of record, or offi cer of justice. Certain persons are pri vileged from arrests, as members of par liament, peeresses by birth, marriage, &c., members of convocation actually attend ing them, ambassadors, domestic servants of ambassadors, king's servants, mar shals, or wardens of the fleet, clerks, at tormes, or other persons attending the courts of justice, clergymen performing divine service, suitors, witnesses supcena ed, and other persons necessarily attend ing any court of record upon business, bankrupts coming to surrender within 42 days after their surrender, witnesses properly summoned before commission ers of bankruptcy, or other commissioners of great seal, sailors and volunteer soldiers, unless the debt be 201., officers of court, only where they are sued in their rights, but not if as executors or administrators, nor in joint actions. No writ, process, warrant, &c. (except for treason, felony, or for breach of the peace,) shall be served on Sunday ; but a person arrested the day before may be retaken on the Sunday. No person can be arrested out of a supe rior court, unless the cause of action be 101. and upwards; an arrest must be by corporal seizing, or touching the defen dant. An officer cannot justify open an outward door or window to exe cute, process, unless a stranger, who is not of the family, upon a pursuit, take re fuge in the house of another. The cham
ber of a lodger is not to be considered as his outer door. No officer shall carry his prisoner to any tavern without his consent, nor to gaol within 24 hours after: his arrest, unless he refuses to go to some safe house. In criminal cases, the causes of suspicion which justify the arrest of a person for felony are, the common fame of the country, the living a vagrant, idle, disorderly life, without any visible means to support it ; the being in company with a known offender at the time of the of fence; the being found in circumstances which induce a strong presumption of guilt ; behaviour betraying a conscious ness of guilt ; and the being pursued by hue and cry. But none of these causes will justify the arresting a man for the suspicion of crimes, unless a crime has been actually committed.
AttnEsT of judgment : to move in arrest of judgment, is to shew cause why judg ment should not be stayed, notwithstand ing a verdict given. The causes of arrest of judgment are, want of notice of trial; where the plaintiff before trial treats the jury; the record differs from the deed pleaded; for material defect in pleading; where persons are misnamed ; more is given and found by the verdict than laid in the declaration; or, the declaration doth not lay the thing with certainty.