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Re: No Indictment in Chokehold Death
You can legally resist unlawful commands by law enforcement up to and including the use of deadly force. That was an SC ruling around the turn of the 20th Century - don't remember the citation offhand.
As you point out arrests made out of legitimate errors are lawful and you are legally required to comply with them. Also given the extreme deference prosecutors and courts give police I'd think your chances with that as a defense in all but the most obvious cases are slim.
You know what, I learned something today. I didn't know that resisting arrest under some circumstances and in some states is legal, but upon looking it up, it seems that's the case.
Reading more about it, though, I also learned that an arrest made in error is not unlawful if the officer's belief that the arrest was lawful was reasonable.
In this case, the arrest was reasonable, because the man was breaking the law by selling contraband cigarettes.
You can legally resist unlawful commands by law enforcement up to and including the use of deadly force. That was an SC ruling around the turn of the 20th Century - don't remember the citation offhand.
As you point out arrests made out of legitimate errors are lawful and you are legally required to comply with them. Also given the extreme deference prosecutors and courts give police I'd think your chances with that as a defense in all but the most obvious cases are slim.