Sus law
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In Britain, the Sus law was the informal name for a stop-and-search law that permitted a police officer to act on suspicion, or `sus', alone. The law was widely believed to have been abused by the Metropolitan Police to harass young black men.
It was based upon Sections 4 and 6 of the Vagrancy Act 1824 which made it "illegal for a suspected person or reputed thief to frequent or loiter in a public place with intent to commit an arrestable offence" and effectively permitted the police to stop and search and even arrest anyone they chose, purely on the basis of suspicion that they might commit a crime.
The law caused much discontent and was abolished following riots in St Pauls, Bristol, in 1979, and in Brixton, London, and Toxteth, Liverpool, in 1981, because its abuse was believed to be a contributory factor to these events.
Subsequent British legislation which makes provision for the police to act on the basis of suspicion alone is often denounced as "another sus law" by opponents.
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