Is assaulting an officer actually punished?

[Unobtanium]

I've always wondered, is this really something people are actually punished for, or is it a "tack-on" if they ARE arrested, and usually dropped in the bargaining of the court-room?

Now, I don't mean attacking an officer with a weapon or something, I mean spitting on them/at them when drunk, scuffling a bit as the perp is cuffed, screaming in their face, petty nonsense like that? I know it is taken into account, etc. but is it actually something you can point to later and say "See, they paid XXX in time/fine for XXX action here..."

Or is the being screamed at, spit at, etc. just considered part of the job like it is in other professions?

[iWander]

Part of the job. It shouldn't be but it is. Don't like it and can't take it, be a firefighter where everyone loves you.

[HCM]

I've always wondered, is this really something people are actually punished for, or is it a "tack-on" if they ARE arrested, and usually dropped in the bargaining of the court-room?

Now, I don't mean attacking an officer with a weapon or something, I mean spitting on them/at them when drunk, scuffling a bit as the perp is cuffed, screaming in their face, petty nonsense like that? I know it is taken into account, etc. but is it actually something you can point to later and say "See, they paid XXX in time/fine for XXX action here..."

Or is the being screamed at, spit at, etc. just considered part of the job like it is in other professions?

Like every thing in the criminal justice system the answer is "it depends."

Screaming or verbal abuse ? - no. It is part of the job. The exception would be specifically artuculated threats.

For practical purposes prosecuting an assault on an officer normally requires some type of physical injury.

Spitting on an officer is normally a misdemeanor assault.

You'd have to define "Scuffling" but my understanding of the term would be more in line with resisting arrest.

[BehindBlueI's]

Depends. The other charges, jail crowding, the prosecutor, the arrested person's record, how bad the assault was, etc all can change the answer.

[Unobtanium]

Makes sense. I was just curious. As to "scuffling", I mean twisting, yanking, etc. trying to resist being cuffed, not actually attacking etc. as in delivering directed strikes.

[Poconnor]

It's part of the job. Unless you get hurt enough to miss days from work. Once I arrested a drunk who tried to push me down a flight of stairs. The prosecutor told me me he was dropping the felony because I was too big if we went to trial.

[lwt16]

Nah, minor stuff like that rolls off most of our backs. That kind of stuff is covered under misdemeanor "resisting arrest" here in Alabama.

Now actively fighting or landing blows on one of us......that gets felony charges here that are usually busted down to misdemeanors on plea deals.

I've had two or three that I charged over the years. One tore my uniform shirt (badge went flying, insignia flying, etc) and had grabbed on to my holstered Beretta enough to make the mag come unseated about half way. I don't think it was a disarm attempt but once I realized what his left hand had a hold of I unleashed on him in a ground and pound session. He let go and got cuffed up.

The jail notified my sergeant who had to come take pics of the dude's face and I had to cover the techniques I used in my arrest report. That guy got charged but I am not sure what the disposition was. Doubtful the felony stuck but the elements of the crime were there.

We had an officer suffer a pretty good beat down recently that required corrective surgery to his face. I'm sure that felony charge will stick. So yeah, like the poster stated above.....it depends.

Regards.

[blues]

Certainly mileage varies in this arena. One of my old partners up in NYC was asked to go out and help conduct a background investigation for some new hires about to be brought on board.

A neighbor of one of the candidates he was inquiring about held him at gunpoint for hours in his residence claiming he "knew why he was there".

Nobody wondered where he was as it was used as a "go homer" so he could get out of 26 Federal Plaza early and make his way out to "the Island" early and beat traffic.

He talked his way out after being held for hours and neither the U.S. Attorney's office nor the county D.A. pressed charges.

Left a very bitter taste behind.

[Dr. No]

I fought a guy over 3 city blocks. He had 21 warrants for his arrest. He separated my shoulder and busted my lip. He got 10 years probation.

A guy shot 18 rounds of 7.62x39 at our team 9 hours after we made first contact with him. He was charged with 6 counts of agg assault on a PO. He got 6 6 year sentences, to be served concurrently, of which he only has to do 50% if he has good behavior.


So .... no.

[blues]

I didn't get into the donnybrooks that uniform patrol officers do on a much more routine basis...but none of my "scuffles" resulted in additional charges being sought.

[voodoo_man]

Locally, no. Spitting, simple assault like swinging at or otherwise trying to start a fight but then getting tased or easily subdued.

Unless the officer sustained some sort of serious injury that required hospitalization or worse nothing will come of it.

The video of the Asian guy from hangover saying "but did you die?" Is what you really need to do ask yourself and if the answer is "almost" then the charge may stick.

[octagon]

We often charged for swing or kicks that connected even without much injury just to show the judge and jury the persons full personality at the time. We always charged if officers had to use force of strikes,TASER or the added force caused some injury. That was CYA. Most of the time these were the charges that got pled down or eliminated in a plea and the original charges stuck or got plead down less. We had very supportive city attorneys/prosecutors so we were lucky.

That said spitting,pulling, anything verbal, kicks,swings etc that didn't connect and pretty much anything while the subject was cuffed resulted in no additional charges at the officer level.

[Odin Bravo One]

A lot has changed since I wore a badge, but I always ensured that Assault on a Public Safety Officer was punished appropriately....... the charges may have been reduced, or even dropped as part of a deal, but the offense itself never went unpunished.

[Elkhitman]

Staff assaults have gone up over 300% in my agency. Needless to say the DA never fails to impress us with the INTP (intent not to prosecute). We are fighting all the time, officer getting attacked by Sureno gang members. Had an officer recently get scalding water thrown in his face. The again, life in a jail is a lot different than on the street.

[willie]

Having worked in corrections, I observed that some elected d.a's ignore complaints of "routine" kicks and bumps that staff might endure when restraining inmates. A bit of thread drift here, but I wish to point out that an obese person might be very strong and agile, and some females are stronger than males. Both groups are capable of delivering vicious "routine" lumps. Of course cops already know this.

[Erick Gelhaus]

No, not at all like it should be - far too often. There was a time, I've heard, where what Sean M mentioned would have occurred and then the event would have bee called good.

In the last several years I've only seen one incident prosecuted to a successful conclusion and that was in a resisting, rather than assaulting, case. Suspect & family made repeated racist comments about the minority officer. Suspect & family some egregious claims about the officer's actions. Video exonerated officer while showing suspect & family to be way wrong. Familiy hired patrol car chasing shyster who stirred everything up even more.

Very compitent deputy prosecutor took the case and destroyed suspect, her lawyer, and her family.

That is so rare it stands out. There are others going the opposite direction where all the suspects got were low level plea deals.

[PD Sgt.]

Where I am at even a simple assault on an officer is a felony. Purposely spitting on an officer is as well. We have Detective Bureau personnel handle the charges, both to ensure proper completion as well as serve as a filter. This prevents resisting arrest from being charged as an assault if the officer takes it too personally. I used to work in the unit that processed these offenses and have charged it dozens of times.

If the officer said they were assaulted and it met the statutory requirements, we charged it. The DA office was pretty good about follow through, and I think part of that was due to Bureau personnel processing the cases. We worked together already on all the shootings and stabbings, so another felony assault case (on the officer) was treated the same. One prosecutor in particular would only allow pleas to the indictment (with flexibility on the sentence) so the assault would remain the offense of record.

We did not require harm be done, as it was not required in the statute. There is actually case law with my name on it affirming this after it was the basis for an appeal by a guy we convicted for attacking an officer while he was drunk. His position was since the officer was not harmed, his punching him should not count. The appeals court did not agree.

Now that is not to say that in my day a lot of this was not adjudicated at the street level, but in recent years I have unfortunately seen a trend of more officers being injured than suspects requiring medical treatment.

[babypanther]

Served a Warrant for Resisting Arrest on a citizen. Made contact with a male at the listed address on the Warrant, he gave the wrong name but the correct SSN. My partner and I wrestle him into cuffs. We didn't add another resisting arrest charge, or Obstructing Justice (felony). If he had swung on us, completely different story.

At my Federal job, and here, the same point has been made, and reinforced to me through interactions with criminal individuals. Fairness and strength go a long way, and a good old fashioned ass whipping is remembered as well as being treated as a human being as much as the situation allows.

[Totem Polar]

Left a very bitter taste behind.

I bet it did. That's messed up.

[gskip]

Utah is a good state. Resisting arrest, assault on a PO, projecting bodily fluid at a PO, are all chargable offenses. They get charged too. Harm doesn't need to be done, its just like any other assault charge.

[LittleLebowski]

A lot has changed since I wore a badge, but I always ensured that Assault on a Public Safety Officer was punished appropriately....... the charges may have been reduced, or even dropped as part of a deal, but the offense itself never went unpunished.

Did you ever hear Uncle Pat's stories on this? One involved a fairly well known actor.

[LSP552]

Charged yes, actual jail time was rare unless someone was seriously hurt. I had a crazy woman try an bite my thumb off once and that didn't even rate probation in one area of the state I was working at the time.

[KeeFus]

Jail time? Not likely. Assault on LEO is a misdemeanor here in NC. However, spit on us and it's a Class F felony. Ive had a few fights wherein they were charged with misdemeanors...never a day in jail. I've been bitten twice by humans. Once on the right forearm and once on the right hip. When I got bit on the hip I had arrested the female for hitting another female in the bean with a crescent wrench. She ended up on the street in the fetal position by the time I got my hands on her. About that time that ho' latched on like a snapping turtle and I felt a burning pain. When I looked down all I saw was her latched on...so I responded to the threat. She had "track hair" weaved in...and when I got finished the track hair was laying in the street. I ended up surrounded by about 12-15 people with my back on a lightpole...spraying anyone that got close with OC. I ended up using the cresent wrench to fend off a few people before help arrived. I ended up in the ER to get a tetanus shot...there is more to that story...but safe to say I went home at the end of the shift and we took a few to jail. She pled guilty and got probation.

I wish the courts and legislature would back LE more...I won't hold my breath.

3 years 3 months...and I'm done.

[blues]

Jail time? Not likely. Assault on LEO is a misdemeanor here in NC. However, spit on us and it's a Class F felony. Ive had a few fights wherein they were charged with misdemeanors...never a day in jail. I've been bitten twice by humans. Once on the right forearm and once on the right hip. When I got bit on the hip I had arrested the female for hitting another female in the bean with a crescent wrench. She ended up on the street in the fetal position by the time I got my hands on her. About that time that ho' latched on like a snapping turtle and I felt a burning pain. When I looked down all I saw was her latched on...so I responded to the threat. She had "track hair" weaved in...and when I got finished the track hair was laying in the street. I ended up surrounded by about 12-15 people with my back on a lightpole...spraying anyone that got close with OC. I ended up using the cresent wrench to fend off a few people before help arrived. I ended up in the ER to get a tetanus shot...there is more to that story...but safe to say I went home at the end of the shift and we took a few to jail. She pled guilty and got probation.

I wish the courts and legislature would back LE more...I won't hold my breath.

3 years 3 months...and I'm done.

I gotta admit you got a snort out of me halfway through your tale, KeeFus. When you're out this way in western NC let me know so I can stand you a beer or other beverage of your choice.

[John Hearne]

The other "joke charge" is fleeing to elude. Even when the law is very clear cut, like we have in Tennessee, we almost never get prosecutors to pursue it. If they do charge, they always go for the misdemeanor count, not the felony, even when the felony guidelines are exceeded by vast amounts. Apparently the right to run from and fight the police is enshrined in some informal Constitution somewhere.

[Coyotesfan97]

Assault a Police Officer expect some serious probation. County Attorney charging standards dont you know.

Assault a Police Dog you're getting some DOC time plus some ER time...

[KeeFus]

I gotta admit you got a snort out of me halfway through your tale, KeeFus. When you're out this way in western NC let me know so I can stand you a beer or other beverage of your choice.

Sounds like a plan. We get up that way every few years. I'm currently on my phone at Fort Jackson waiting to see my son graduate Army BCT and I'm on my phone. There is more to that true story...but I will wait until I retire to share it any where.

[blues]

Sounds like a plan. We get up that way every few years. I'm currently on my phone at Fort Jackson waiting to see my son graduate Army BCT and I'm on my phone. There is more to that true story...but I will wait until I retire to share it any where.

I'll look forward to hearing it. And congrats to your son. Transylvania County awaits your arrival. :cool:

[willie]

Having grown up in the deep South, I'm aware that some folks are quicker to bite than others. This propensity is well known to police and correctional workers.

[Treecop]

I 2010, I got 4 years on a drunk in Texas that resisted the old non-refusable blood draw by swinging and clawing. Life hasn't worked out so well since, he was convicted of being a habitual offender and deemed not fit for society in the Lone Star State.

[ssb]

I personally will not dismiss:

- Fleeing/evading charges (within reason -- the "he went on for two more blocks after I blue-lighted him" ones I don't deal with)
- Assaulting an officer (to include spitting).

That's not an official policy, just my own thing in my own little kingdom.

[Robert Mitchum]

Long story .. Short version had a fight with a Cop in the 70's.
He lost badly . I let him arrest me .. I truly could have wasted him with my bare hands.

Went to Court .. big shot Lawyer got me out of it with nothing on my record.
The Cop hit me first during a traffic stop at 2am .. I was working as a Bouncer (doorman) at the time.

I did not start the fight.
My lawyer worked out at the Gym and only charged me 100 bucks .. The good old 70's.

When I went to become a CO years later nothing was on my record .. since than I have helped out a few Cops having problems on the Street.
Now at 64 .. I would help defend a Cop with my last drop of blood .... if he or she was in a life and death situation .. That's not a BS line and anyone who knows me would know that.

[TC215]

I've seen our state judges dismiss assault on officer charges because getting hit is "part of the job".

However, a few years ago I was in a fight with a convicted felon who had 2 firearms on him, and tried unsuccessfully to take my gun from my holster. The US Attorney's Office picked it up and hammered that guy. They even charged him with felon in possession for the few seconds he had his hand around the grip of my gun. He got 23 years.

[jlw]

A guy pulled a gun on our deputies; got shot for his trouble, and is now serving 15 years in prison with five more on probation to follow.

Two nights later, a guy pulled a gun on a cop in the neighboring county, got shot for his troubles, and he got probation.

The two counties are in the same judicial circuit with the same district attorney and the same judges.

[KPD]

1: Deputy winds up in a fight in a minivan. Perpetrator gets the Deputy's gun and says "I got you now bitch!" Shot gets fired and a bystander intervenes. Deputy isn't hurt. Perpetrator gets 7 years probation..........
2: Officer gets struck by a car fleeing a traffic stop and gets minor injuries. Perpetrator gets 3 years probation.
3: Officer gets his food spit in at a restaurant by one of the employees. Perpetrator gets 1 year community corrections.
4: Illegal alien tries to stab a narcotics officer during a reverse. Charge gets dismissed in settlement.

I can go on. These were just the first four I thought of.

[Nephrology]

Very compitent deputy prosecutor took the case and destroyed suspect, her lawyer, and her family.


Good.

[John Hearne]

I realize that the source has its own biases but this is pretty par for the judicial course:
https://bluelivesmatter.blue/judge-sallie-kim-robert-french/

[Unobtanium]

Very interesting responses. I was just curious if healthcare and LE were similar with regards to "minor " workplace violence and lack of actual response, and it seems they are identical.

[PFranklin]

I don't know, but where I work you'd better have good health care insurance if you hit or spit on a cop. And no copper with any experience expects any more justice from the courts than the bad guy does. Coin toss for all involved.