long arm of the law

English

Pronunciation

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Noun

long arm of the law

1. (idiomatic, almost always preceded by the) The influence or effectiveness of law enforcement institutions; law enforcement officers collectively.
   • 1889, Wilkie Collins, chapter 60, in The Legacy of Cain:

     It is my belief that I could have felt no greater dismay, if the long arm of the Law had laid its hold on me while he was speaking.

   • 1979 September 3, “Pass the Buck”, in Time‎, archived from the original on 1 September 2010:

     The long arm of the law does not protect banks the way it used to.

   • 2008 September 12, Lisa Rein, “Jurisdictions Share Data on Ex-Offenders”, in Washington Post‎:

     "Repeat violent offenders will hopscotch over state lines to avoid the long arm of the law," said Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley.

Translations

influence or effectiveness of law enforcement

Chinese: Mandarin: 法網／法网 (zh) (wǎngluó), 網羅／网罗 (zh) (fǎwǎng) Danish: lovens lange arm Dutch: lange arm der wet Finnish: lain pitkä koura, lain koura German: Rechtspflege (de) f Greek: τσιμπίδα του νόμου f (tsimpída tou nómou) Italian: braccio della legge Norwegian: Bokmål: lovens lange arm Nynorsk: lovas lange arm, lovens lange arm Polish: wymiar sprawiedliwości (pl) m Romanian: brațul legii n, brațul lung al legii n Spanish: brazo de la ley Swedish: lagens långa arm c