Under the Court's Ruling in Atwater V

Under the Court's ruling in Atwater v. City of Lago Vista, the Court addressed the question of whether the Fourth Amendment prohibits a custodial arrest for an offense that is not punishable by jail when there is no immediate need for detention of the suspect. The Court held:

A) When officers have an option, as they did in Atwater, to make an arrest or issue a citation, the Fourth Amendment dictates that the officers employ the least intrusive method of deterring the criminal activity.
B) When officers have probable cause to believe that an individual has committed even a minor criminal offense in their presence, they may make an arrest without violating the Fourth Amendment.
C) Officers bear the burden of knowing which statutes permit the issuance of a citation and required, under the Fourth Amendment, to be sufficiently trained to make that determination in the heat of the moment.
D) Officers are required by the Fourth Amendment to balance the rights of the individual offender against the need to protect society before making a determination if a minor criminal offense committed in their presence warrants an arrest.