Thursday, December 13, 2018

Defending Yourself Against The Charges Of Resisting Arrest NJ Law Enforcement Might Bring

By Thomas Cooper


The current administration has created a lot of strong feelings when it comes to its attitudes and policies. There are protesters making signs, showing up at rallies and taking to the streets. When officials try to break up demonstrations, innocent protesters can get caught in the crosshairs and be accused of resisting arrest NJ law enforcement will try to prove.

If you don't do exactly what an officer tells you to do in a tense situation, you can be seen as a resistor. When that happens, you may very well be arrested and taken to jail even though you haven't really done anything wrong. You should know that the prosecution has to prove you were committing a crime. They have to prove you knew the individual you were in conflict with was a police officer, establish that the police officer acted legally, and prove that you were acting intentionally.

The most common ways protesters resist officers is by struggling or fighting when law enforcement attempts to detain them. You might lay down, sit down, or go limp when an officer tries to remove you from an area. You could also be arrested for giving a fake name or bogus information when an officer asks you to verify who you are and whether or not you have the right to be in a certain space.

Resisting arrest can have serious consequences. If you get convicted for some action considered a misdemeanor, you might spend twelve months in jail and be required to pay a fine of up to four thousand dollars. You may have to meet with a probation officer for five years. During the probation period, you can not be convicted of committing the same offense.

A felony conviction has much more serious consequences. You can be sent to jail for as long as three years. If you are convicted in Louisiana, you could be looking at a ten year sentence. You may have to pay restitution in the form of ten thousand dollars. You will have to see a parole officer for a specified amount of time every month or week.

It is in your favor that it's hard to prove someone was intentionally resisting arrest. You can argue that excessive force was used and that you were protecting yourself and acting in self-defense. You can also say that the officer in question had no right to arrest you because he was not authorized.

You could argue that the police report did not accurately state the facts. Openly accusing a police officer of lying can backfire on you though. It is a better idea to present your case as one in which you state that the report distorts the facts as you remember them.

There is an argument that there was no threat, or the potential for harm, on your part. If you attempted to run away, or were yelling at the officer, without actually causing harm, you probably have a case. In any event you will need the services of an experienced lawyer to represent you.




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