Which is one of the three classifications of interactions?

• A. Traffic stops
• B. Consensual Encounters
• C. Prosecutions
• D. Warrants

Answer: (B)

In police–citizen interactions, there are three classifications: consensual encounters, detentions, and arrests. A consensual encounter is voluntary and non-coercive, with the person free to leave and not under restraint or required to answer questions. This is distinct from detentions, such as traffic stops, where liberty is restrained and the officer must have reasonable suspicion to justify the stop. The third classification is an arrest, where there is probable cause and the person is in custody. Prosecutions and warrants aren’t interaction types themselves—they’re legal actions or tools that follow or authorize enforcement rather than describe how the encounter unfolds. So consensual encounters are indeed one of the three classifications.