Illegal Arrest?

[banyon]

Originally Posted by Third Eye

Maybe I'm mistaken here, but my interpretation is that while the arrest was unlawful according to state law, it wasn't unlawful according to the US Constitution. Since no (federal) Constitutional right was violated, no protection was offered by it.

This is my reading to. There's no federal constitutional right to be issued a citation for a traffic offense in lieu of arrest.

Since it is a right provided by the state (in this case Virginia), it's also up to them to figure out what remedy they want when it is violated. In this case it appears the the VA legislature is comfortable with civil suits as a deterrent to police misconduct in this area instead of the exclusionary rule.

I disagree with the VA legislature, but I don't disagree with the Court's decision.