The Excesses of the Police Function During Arrests in Flagrante Delicto and their Impact on the Constitutional Rule of Law

Abstract

Police excesses during arrests in flagrante delicto represent a significant threat to the Constitutional Rule of Law, transcending borders and political systems. The research addressed the impact of such excesses in the national and Latin American context, addressing the tension between maintaining public order and protecting individual rights. The main objective was to understand the impact of police function excesses during arrests in flagrante delicto on the Constitutional Rule of Law. The methodology employed was an exhaustive documentary analysis of legal, academic, and jurisprudential sources, following a qualitative approach to explore the complexities of the phenomenon. The main results reveal that these excesses violate fundamental rights such as equality before the law, due process, and the prohibition of inhuman treatment; manifestations include excessive use of force, arbitrary detentions, discrimination, and denial of procedural rights; perceptions vary among actors, who perceive them as serious violations of rights, while the police emphasize the need to maintain order, and the consequences are profound, generating distrust in the police institution, which can perpetuate cycles of impunity and weakening the foundations of the State. It was concluded that police excesses during flagrante delicto severely affect the legitimacy of the Constitutional Rule of Law by systematically violating fundamental rights and basic constitutional principles.