California Penal Code Section 148

Anyone who obstructs a police officer or emergency personnel during their time on duty can be found guilty of resisting an arrest, under California Penal Code Section 148.

It is punishable as a misdemeanor with fines of up to one thousand dollars and a year in the county jail. Some other penalties for resisting arrest include probation.

Examples of resisting arrest include struggling to be handcuffed or escorted in a police car. It isn’t so much as only a physical resistance, since if you fail to identify yourself to avoid arrest or present an invalid ID which doesn’t belong to you, these are also considered violations of CPC 148.

These are non physical dissuasions that can be used to avoid getting arrested, and it prevents the officers from exercising their responsibilities.

To take this case to  trial, certain elements of the crime will have to be proven and these include:

• Resisting, impeding or even stalling the officer or an emergency specialist
• You obstructed the officer during their hours on duty
• You deliberately ignored the police officer direction
• You had been conscious that the person giving instructions or performing their duties was an officer or an emergency specialist

You should employ an experienced attorney, to fight charges for resisting arrest, if you are innocent. These types of misdemeanor offenses reflect poorly come time to find employment or running criminal background checks, as they stay on your records for a very long time.

Based in Orange County, McGregor and Collins can help bring justice to your situation. Give us a call at  (949) 250-6097

Learn more about other California Section Penal Codes here.