Assault on a Police Officer Arrests in Darien

Fighting an assault on a police officer arrest in Darien can be difficult without the help of a seasoned criminal attorney. Whether you believe you were wrongfully arrested or would just like to mitigate the consequences you may end up facing in your case, an assault on a police officer lawyer could help you fight your case.

What is the Legal Definition of Assaulting a Police Officer?

According to Connecticut General Statutes §53a-167c, a person can be charged with assaulting a police officer if they throw something dangerous or offensive at a police officer, expose a police officer to a chemical irritant like tear gas, or do anything to cause a police officer actual physical harm. Additionally, the individual must have known or reasonably should have known that the person they assaulted was a police officer and intended to do the officer harm with their actions.

These legal criteria are important, as all three—knowledge, intent, and physical injury—must be present for an assault on a police officer arrest in Darien to result in a conviction. For an arrest to be made, though, the cops need only probable cause. Therefore, many arrests take place that don’t actually lead to a conviction.

If the police believe you assaulted a cop or another peace officer, they will likely charge you under § 53a-167c. You may also face charges for disorderly conduct, breach of peace, or anything else that the cops sees fit.

What are the Penalties for Assault on an Officer?

This is a Class C Felony offense. Maximum penalties include a 10-year prison sentence and a $10,000 penalty. Further, even long after your sentence is served and your fine is paid, you may face social, economic, and professional repercussions for a felony conviction. Avoiding a conviction is, therefore, of the utmost importance.

If you are able to avoid conviction and get your case dismissed or nolled, you’ll likely want to have the arrest scrubbed from the internet. This involves contacting news websites and requesting they take down articles regarding your arrest. After a dismissal (or 13 months after a nolle), you can swear under oath that the arrest did not happen, so you’ll want to remove those pesky articles. To learn more about our firm’s internet scrubbing practice, click here.

Are There Any Mitigating Defenses for Assaulting a Peace Officer?

One of the easiest ways a defense attorney may be able to invalidate an arrest for assaulting a Darien police officer is by showing that the police officer did not suffer any physical injury from the defendant’s alleged conduct. For instance, if a police officer claims they were assaulted but never sought medical treatment and had no documentation showing that they were hurt, it might poke a hole in their version of events.

In the same vein, a person should not be convicted for assaulting someone they reasonably did not know was a police officer—for example, there is no reason to know that a plainclothes officer who did not identify themselves and refused to show a badge is a peace officer. Finally, showing a lack of intent to cause an officer any harm can be key to contesting this type of allegation, especially if it can be corroborated with witness testimony, surveillance tapes, or footage from an officer’s dashcam or body camera.

A Darien Attorney Could Help Fight an Assault on a Police Officer Arrest

Contesting an assault on a police officer arrest in Darien is best done with a dedicated legal representative by your side. The lawyers at Mark Sherman Law have years of experience handling cases like yours all over the State of Connecticut. Click here to read our certified 5-star client reviews, then call today to learn more about how one could help in your situation.