Indiana statute
Ind. Code § 35-44.1-3-1 — Resisting law enforcement; interfering with public safety
Current through 2026 Regular Session
Part of Chapter 3: Detention, Indiana Code.
Criminal charges under this statute
Full text of Ind. Code § 35-44.1-3-1
Statutory text current through the 2026 Regular Session. This publication reproduces the official statutory text; it is not the official statutes of the State of Indiana.
Sec. 1. (a) A person who knowingly or intentionally: (1) forcibly resists, obstructs, or interferes with a law enforcement officer or a person assisting the officer while the officer is lawfully engaged in the execution of the officer's duties; (2) forcibly resists, obstructs, or interferes with the authorized service or execution of a civil or criminal process or order of a court; or (3) flees from a law enforcement officer after the officer has, by visible or audible means, including operation of the law enforcement officer's siren or emergency lights, identified himself or herself and ordered the person to stop; commits resisting law enforcement, a Class A misdemeanor, except as provided in subsection (c). (b) A person who, having been denied entry by a firefighter, an emergency medical services provider, or a law enforcement officer, knowingly or intentionally enters an area that is marked off with barrier tape or other physical barriers, commits interfering with public safety, a Class B misdemeanor, except as provided in subsection (c) or (j). (c) The offense under subsection (a) or (b) is a: (1) Level 6 felony if the person uses a vehicle to commit the offense; (2) Level 5 felony if: (A) while committing the offense, the person draws or uses a deadly weapon; (B) while committing the offense, the person inflicts moderate bodily injury on or otherwise causes moderate bodily injury to another person; or (C) while committing the offense, the person operates a vehicle in a manner that creates a substantial risk of bodily injury to another person; (3) Level 4 felony if: (A) while committing the offense, the person operates a vehicle in a manner that causes serious bodily injury to another person; or (B) the person uses a vehicle to commit the offense and the person has a prior unrelated conviction under this section involving the use of a vehicle in the commission of the offense; (4) Level 3 felony if, while committing the offense, the person operates a vehicle in a manner that causes the death or catastrophic injury of another person; and (5) Level 2 felony if, while committing any offense described in subsection (a), the person operates a vehicle in a manner that causes the death or catastrophic injury of a firefighter, an emergency medical services provider, or a law enforcement officer while the firefighter, emergency medical services provider, or law enforcement officer is engaged in the firefighter's, emergency medical services provider's, or officer's official duties. (d) The offense under subsection (a) is a Level 6 felony if, while committing an offense under: (1) subsection (a)(1) or (a)(2), the person: (A) creates a substantial risk of bodily injury to the person or another person; and (B) has two (2) or more prior unrelated convictions under subsection (a); or (2) subsection (a)(3), the person has two (2) or more prior unrelated convictions under subsection (a). (e) If a person uses a vehicle to commit a felony offense under subsection (c), as part of the criminal penalty imposed for the offense, the court shall impose a minimum executed sentence of at least: (1) thirty (30) days, if the person does not have a prior unrelated conviction under this section; (2) one hundred eighty (180) days, if the person has one (1) prior unrelated conviction under this section; or (3) one (1) year, if the person has two (2) or more prior unrelated convictions under this section. (f) Notwithstanding IC 35-50-2-2.2 and IC 35-50-3-1 , the mandatory minimum sentence imposed under subsection (e) may not be suspended. (g) If a person is convicted of an offense involving the use of a motor vehicle under: (1) subsection (c)(1), if the person exceeded the speed limit by at least twenty (20) miles per hour while committing the offense; (2) subsection (c)(2); (3) subsection (c)(3); (4) subsection (c)(4); or (5) subsection (c)(5); the court may notify the bureau of motor vehicles to suspend or revoke the person's driver's license in accordance with IC 9-30-4-6.1 (b) for the period described in IC 9-30-4-6.1 (d)(1) or IC 9-30-4-6.1 (d)(2). The court shall inform the bureau whether the person has been sentenced to a term of incarceration. At the time of conviction, the court may obtain the person's current driver's license and return the license to the bureau of motor vehicles. (h) A person who commits an offense described in subsection (c) commits a separate offense for each person whose bodily injury, serious bodily injury, catastrophic injury, or death is caused by a violation of subsection (c). (i) A court may order terms of imprisonment imposed on a person convicted of more than one (1) offense described in subsection (c) to run consecutively. Consecutive terms of imprisonment imposed under this subsection are not subject to the sentencing restrictions set forth in IC 35-50-1-2 (c) through IC 35-50-1-2 (d). (j) As used in this subsection, "family member" means a child, grandchild, parent, grandparent, or spouse of the person. It is a defense to a prosecution under subsection (b) that the person reasonably believed that the person's family member: (1) was in the marked off area; and (2) had suffered bodily injury or was at risk of suffering bodily injury; if the person is not charged as a defendant in connection with the offense, if applicable, that caused the area to be secured by barrier tape or other physical barriers.
Official sources
Legal terms used in this section
Questions this section answers
Is resisting law enforcement; interfering with public safety a felony or a misdemeanor in Indiana?
It depends on the circumstances: resisting law enforcement; interfering with public safety ranges from a Class B Misdemeanor to a Level 6 Felony in Indiana under Ind. Code § 35-44.1-3-1.
Resisting law enforcement (base offense): Class A Misdemeanor (Ind. Code § 35-44.1-3-1(a)) · Interfering with public safety (base offense): Class B Misdemeanor (Ind. Code § 35-44.1-3-1(b)) · Repeat resisting with risk of injury or repeat fleeing: Level 6 Felony (Ind. Code § 35-44.1-3-1(d))
Which Indiana statute covers resisting law enforcement; interfering with public safety?
Resisting law enforcement; interfering with public safety is governed by Ind. Code § 35-44.1-3-1 (Resisting law enforcement; interfering with public safety).
This reference is informational and is not legal advice.