Tennessee Resisting Arrest Laws

Arrests often happen without incident. However, sometimes, things go wrong. Officers fail to follow proper procedures, or the person being arrested might pull away, panic, or struggle during the process. If your actions during an arrest cross certain limits, you could face resisting arrest charges. Tennessee criminal law handles these cases differently, and understanding those differences matters if you’re facing charges.

In this article, we’ll explain the important aspects of resisting arrest charges in Tennessee. If you’re facing resisting arrest charges in Tennessee, contact a criminal defense attorney near you. They can evaluate your case and help protect your rights throughout the process.

What Counts as Resisting Arrest in Tennessee?

Tennessee Code Annotated Section 39-16-602 prohibits the intentional use of force to prevent or obstruct an officer from conducting a frisk, making an arrest, or effecting a stop, or performing a search. The same law also protects civil process servers. These are officials who deliver legal documents, such as subpoenas or court notices.

Unlike some state resistance laws, where simply not cooperating might result in a charge of resisting arrest, Tennessee requires a specific level of force. You must actually use physical force for the resisting arrest charge to apply.

What this means is that shouting at an officer, verbally objecting to your arrest, or simply refusing to cooperate without physical force generally won’t meet the legal definition of resisting arrest. However, pulling away when an officer tries to handcuff you or pushing against them could lead to charges. Those actions involve actual physical force.

What Prosecutors Must Prove

To secure a conviction for this criminal offense, prosecutors need to establish three key elements:

• You knew the person was a law enforcement officer, a civil process server, or someone working in the officer’s presence or under the officer’s direction at the scene.

• The officer was conducting a stop, frisk, halt, arrest, or search of any person.

• You physically interfered by using force.

It matters whether you knew you were dealing with law enforcement. If you genuinely did not realize someone was a law enforcement officer, prosecutors cannot meet the first element of resisting arrest.

The Force Requirement Under Tennessee Law

To face resisting arrest charges in Tennessee, you must use force against an officer. Tennessee Code § 39-11-106 defines force as compulsion through physical power or violence. The resisting arrest statute specifically requires that you commit the offense by applying force against the officer or a person acting in the officer’s direction.

This means prosecutors need evidence that you actually resisted arrest by using any type of power or force. Take the case of State v. Applegate (2016). Here, the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals addressed the level of physical resistance that would constitute “force” under the resisting arrest statute. The defendant in this case pulled and tugged away from the officers. He was also yelling and being uncooperative when the officers were trying to put him in handcuffs. The defendant also pulled his hands away and struggled to avoid being handcuffed.

What this means is that acts such as pulling your arm away or struggling while being handcuffed and being uncooperative are sufficient force for a resisting arrest conviction.

How Resisting Arrest Differs from Evading Arrest

Tennessee law treats resisting arrest and evading arrest very differently, even though both involve responding to a police officer‘s attempt to arrest you.

Resisting arrest requires using force against law enforcement officers, a person acting in their direction, or a civil process server. Evading arrest, on the other hand, occurs when you intentionally flee from a law enforcement officer you know is attempting to arrest you.

The Unlawful Arrest Paradox

One of the most confusing parts of Tennessee‘s resisting arrest statute involves what happens when officers unlawfully arrest you. You can still face charges for resisting even when the officer had no legal grounds for the arrest. Tennessee state law essentially requires you to comply with police authority, regardless of whether the authority is exercised lawfully or not.

Meanwhile, Tennessee Code Title 39-16-603 explicitly allows the unlawfulness of the arrest as a defense to evading charges.

So, for example, let’s say an officer pulls you over without reasonable suspicion or probable cause and orders you out of the motor vehicle. This is an unlawful stop. You initially refuse to stop, continue driving for several blocks, then finally pull over — this is evading arrest. When the officer approaches and tries to handcuff you, you pull your arm back and do not cooperate — this is resisting.

You may have a defense to the evading arrest charge because the stop was unlawful. However, you have no defense to the resisting arrest charge, even though it is from the same unlawful stop.

When Can You Resist an Arrest?

Tennessee law recognizes situations in which you can physically resist arrest.

First, the officer must be using or trying to use more force than the situation requires. And second, you must have a reasonable belief that you need to resist the arrest right now to protect yourself from the officer’s excessive force. Both elements must be present for this form of self-defense to apply.

If the officer applies appropriate force for the arrest, you have no right to resist, even if the arrest itself is illegal. You can contact a criminal law attorney if you have questions about whether the force used by the officers who arrested you was reasonable and whether you can apply self-defense.

Penalties for Resisting Arrest

The penalties for resisting arrest in Tennessee depend on the circumstances and whether you used a deadly weapon. The following are the penalties for resisting arrest under TN Code:

• Standard resisting arrest: Basic resisting arrest is a Class B misdemeanor. It carries a maximum penalty of up to 6 months in jail, fines of up to $500, or both.

• Resisting with a deadly weapon: If you use a deadly weapon while resisting arrest, the charge escalates to a Class A misdemeanor. The penalty rises to up to 11 months and 29 days in jail, with fines of up to $2,500, or both.

Get Legal Help with Resisting Arrest Charges

You might feel like you were lawfully resisting an unreasonable use of force when you were being arrested and unsure of how to prove that as a defense. In addition, Tennessee‘s unlawful arrest paradox can be confusing, and the nuances of what constitutes “force” can be very particular. Regardless of your circumstances, seek legal advice from a criminal defense attorney. They can help you understand the details surrounding this criminal charge and the potential legal defenses that apply to your case. Contact a Tennessee criminal defense attorney near you to learn more about how they can help you protect your rights.