Also known as: official oppressions · official misconduct
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A criminal offense committed when a person acting or purporting to act in an official capacity knowingly subjects another to arrest, detention, search, seizure, mistreatment, dispossession, assessment, lien or other infringement of personal or property rights, or denies or impedes another in the exercise or enjoyment of any right, privilege, power or immunity.
Officer Reed stops Otis Olsen late at night solely because Olsen appears nervous in a business park. Reed knows he lacks reasonable suspicion yet detains Olsen and runs his identification. The stop subjects Olsen to an infringement of his liberty rights and meets the elements of official oppression.
Police officers enter Oliver Okeke's apartment without a warrant or consent and seize documents. The officers know the entry violates the Fourth Amendment. Their conduct subjects Okeke to an unlawful search and seizure that constitutes official oppression.
A public official steers a government contract to a favored bidder in exchange for personal payments. The official knows the scheme deprives the public of its right to honest services. The conduct impedes the public's enjoyment of that right and amounts to official oppression.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
An officer subjects Odilia Okamura to prolonged questioning without providing required warnings and uses physical pressure to obtain a statement. The officer knows the tactics are unlawful. The mistreatment infringes Okamura's personal rights and constitutes official oppression.
A state statute prohibits public employees from taking part in political campaigns. Oakley Osei, a state worker, is threatened with discipline for attending a rally. The enforcement denies Osei the exercise of protected speech rights and qualifies as official oppression.
Federal agents arrest Oskar Ocampo for conspiracy based on an agreement they know does not satisfy the elements of the offense. The agents act in their official capacity and knowingly subject Ocampo to detention without legal basis. The arrest constitutes official oppression.
The statute requires that the person know his conduct is illegal when he subjects another to an infringement of rights or denies another the exercise of a right or privilege.
Supporting sources
The offense is committed either by subjecting another to an infringement of rights or by denying or impeding another in the exercise of any right, privilege, power or immunity.
Supporting sources
Any person acting or purporting to act in an official capacity or taking advantage of such actual or purported capacity can be prosecuted.
Supporting sources
…of those standards. For I think it entirely clear that the Weeks exclusionary rule is but a remedy which, by penalizing past official misconduct, is aimed at deterring such conduct in the future. I would not impose upon the States this federal exclusionary remedy. The reasons given by the majority for now suddenly turning its back…