Dragnet (policing)

Common card · No. 384435

A dragnet is any system of coordinated measures for apprehending criminals or suspects; including road barricades and traffic stops, widespread DNA tests, and general increased police alertness. The term derives from a fishing technique of dragging a fishing net across the sea bottom, or through a promising area of open water. While a dragnet can refer to any kind of focused police presence, the traditional definition involves defining an area (such as a building or a city block) or category (such as those of a specific ethnic group within an area) and conducting at least a brief investigation of each person within. Thus, if a criminal is traced to a specific location, everyone in that location might be searched for incriminating evidence. Since the 1950s, such "dragnets" have generally been held to be unconstitutional as unreasonable search and seizure actions in the United States. While traditional "stop and frisk" dragnets have largely fallen into disuse, New York's strategy for controlling...

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