Boston Marathon Bombing Suspect Arrested; Maybe Not? Maybe Two?

UPDATE BELOW…

According to CNN and Fox News, authorities are close to or have already made an arrest related to the Boston Marathon bombings.  Reports say the new development emerged from an examination of two videos – one from a shop (Lord and Taylor) along the race route and one from a news station reporting from the crowds.  Those videos reportedly show a man believed to be the suspect in question leaving a bag near the scene.

They are also reporting that said suspect is headed toward a federal courthouse.  That, of course, leads to many more conversations.  Will he be Mirandized or will he be interrogated; or both?  I think it is relatively safe to assume that civilian court is sure to be his eventual destination for this individual given the administration’s previous positions on these sort of attacks; but at this point it is nothing more than that – an assumption.

A few thoughts.  If they’re making the arrest at this point, one has to believe authorities are relatively confident that the suspect had a hand in the bombing.  The prejudicial impact of a public arrest of this nature would make prosecution difficult to impossible if there’s even the slightest impropriety leading up to arrest.  The evidence trail would have to be extremely tight.

Also, one arrest does not mean the end of the chase.  There could be more than one culprit.  What the suspect says and how quickly he “lawyers up” could take the investigation in a decidedly different direction.

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UPDATE:

Both Fox News and CNN are walking back their reports of “an arrest” and are blaming local sources, bad source, and the AP.  We may really just be playing a game of semantics at this point.  ”Taken into custody” may not mean “arrested.”  To have an arrest, there would also be probable cause.  Video may be sufficient, but one would think that would also include some other corroborating evidence that points to the individual in question.

For what it’s worth, the accused could have consented to being taken into questioning.  He could also be travelling to the courthouse while authorities determine how to handle his interrogation.

A joint press conference is set for 5PM ET.  I would not expect much to be cleared up until that point.

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UPDATE:

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UPDATE:

Maybe two arrests?

UPDATE:

Somewhat “old news” at this point, but if you haven’t been following the never-ending “breaking news” of the day, it could be relevant.

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UPDATE:

CBS News correspondent Bob Orr reports that authorities have spotted at least one person they want to speak with, either as a witness or as a possible suspect. At this point, federal officials say, no arrests have been made.

At the site of what became the second explosion on Monday, surveillance video captured a man placing a backpack on the ground while talking on a cell phone, sources told Orr. The man was wearing a black jacket, a grey hooded sweatshirt and a white baseball cap on backwards.

UPDATE:

The Boston Globe is reporting that both Boston Police and the US Attorney’s office have both confirmed that no one is “in custody” and no “arrests” have been made.

What do we make of this?

Again, we could still be playing semantics here.  ”In custody” and “arrest” are technical terms or “terms of art.”  Authorities could be stopping short of categorizing any developments as such for a number of reasons – the most obvious being they have no one in custody.  The other possibility is that they could have someone detained for questioning and they’re trying to extract as much information as they can from him before they Mirandize him and move forward with the civilian court process.

UPDATE:

Statement from the FBI – no arrests.  They also caution the media that widespread speculation could have “unintended consequences.”  In other words, stop spreading the intel before we have the guy in custody?  If you assume they have no one in custody, it could provoke further violence or open a window of opportunity to flee.

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