What is necessary for officers to establish reasonable suspicion according to U.S. vs Brignoni-Ponce?

To establish reasonable suspicion as outlined in the U.S. vs. Brignoni-Ponce case, officers must rely on specific articulable facts. This means that officers cannot base their suspicion on vague or general assumptions; instead, they must be able to point to concrete facts or circumstances that lead them to believe that a crime may be occurring.

The requirement for specific articulable facts ensures that any intrusion on an individual's rights is justified and based on observable and verifiable evidence rather than on arbitrary decision-making or profiling. This standard protects individuals from arbitrary enforcement and allows for a legal framework within which officers can operate while ensuring the respect of civil liberties. Random checks and internal guidelines do not fulfill the requirement for a reasoned basis but rather speak to procedural methods that may lack the necessary legal grounding.