Evading the Police - Legal Elements, Defenses, & Penalties
When a police officer orders someone to stop, they need to comply. Fleeing from the police not only may suggest guilt but also may result in a separate charge and additional penalties. However, a suspect charged with evading the police may have plausible defenses. Rather than explaining their actions directly to law enforcement, they should consult a criminal lawyer who knows how to handle these cases. Interactions with police or prosecutors in the absence of counsel could result in statements that inadvertently undermine a defendant’s interests.
What Is the Crime of Evading the Police?
The offense of evading the police usually involves fleeing an officer after being told to stop.
Elements of Evading the Police
Many states have enacted laws that specifically cover fleeing, evading, or eluding the police. These statutes often focus on situations involving a vehicle, but some target evasion on foot.
Under a law specific to evading the police, a prosecutor usually needs to prove that someone recognizable as a police officer ordered the defendant to stop. This might involve a spoken order or a visual command like turning on the flashing lights of a police car. The prosecutor also would need to show that the defendant realized that the officer had directed them to stop and knowingly tried to flee the officer.
Alternatively, this conduct may meet the definition of a broader crime, such as resisting arrest or obstructing an officer. A charge of resisting arrest usually requires proving that the defendant intentionally impeded an officer who was trying to make an arrest. An obstruction charge usually involves showing that the defendant intentionally hindered the officer in carrying out their official duties.
Examples of Evading the Police
Penelope has cocaine in her car when she sees flashing blue lights in her rearview mirror. Rather than pulling over, she accelerates and starts weaving between lanes in an effort to lose the officer.
Phil breaks into a house and is eventually confronted by a uniformed officer. The officer says “stop right there,” but Phil jumps out a window and starts running down the street.
Offenses Related to Evading the Police
Someone who tried to flee the police also could face a charge for any underlying crime that they committed. Meanwhile, other offenses that could be charged when a suspect flees include:
- Reckless driving: could be charged if a driver engages in certain dangerous maneuvers while the police chase them
- Hit and run: could be charged if a driver strikes another vehicle or a person during a chase and does not stop
- Vehicular homicide: could be charged if a fleeing driver causes an accident that kills someone during a chase
- Assault and battery: could be charged if a suspect trying to flee the scene on foot strikes the police officer or a bystander
In other words, fleeing the police tends to make things worse instead of better, and potentially much worse in some cases.
Defenses to Evading the Police
A driver or another person charged with evading the police might attack any element of the charge. For example, they might claim that they did not see or understand the officer’s signal to stop. Perhaps the officer made a vague gesture that easily could have been misinterpreted. In other cases, an officer or vehicle may not have been recognizable as law enforcement. Perhaps the defendant reasonably mistook an officer for a gang member and ran away in fear.
Sometimes a driver does not pull over because they are experiencing an emergency. For example, perhaps they are rushing a family member to the hospital to deal with a life-threatening injury. A defendant sometimes also might argue that the attempted stop or arrest was unlawful, such as when an officer acted out of racial bias.
Penalties for Evading the Police
This charge may be a misdemeanor (or a lesser offense) or a felony, depending on the state and the situation. Here are some potential terms of imprisonment in various circumstances involving fleeing, evading, or eluding the police:
- Arizona: 0.75-2 years (1.5 years presumptive) for a driver who flees or attempts to elude a pursuing law enforcement vehicle
- Florida: up to 5 years for a driver who fails to stop their vehicle when ordered by an officer
- Illinois: less than 1 year for a driver who flees or attempts to elude an officer
- Maryland: up to 1 year for a driver who attempts to elude an officer by failing to stop, fleeing on foot, or other means
- Michigan: up to 2 years for a driver who attempts to flee or elude an officer
- New Jersey: up to 18 months for fleeing in an effort to prevent an officer from making an arrest; 3-5 years for a driver who flees or attempts to elude an officer
- Oregon: up to 5 years for a driver who flees or attempts to elude a pursuing officer in the vehicle; up to 364 days for a driver who gets out of the vehicle and flees or attempts to elude the officer
- Pennsylvania: generally up to 90 days for evading arrest or detention on foot
- Texas: up to 1 year for fleeing from an officer who is trying to arrest or detain the defendant (2-10 years if the defendant uses a vehicle)
Penalties may increase in the presence of aggravating factors, such as when the defendant drove recklessly or caused injuries to others. For example, California classifies the basic offense of evading an officer in a vehicle as a misdemeanor that carries up to one year in jail. If the defendant drove a vehicle in a willful or wanton disregard for the safety of people or property, though, this is a “wobbler” that may be charged as a felony or a misdemeanor. If it is charged as a misdemeanor, the driver may face six months to one year in jail. If it is charged as a felony, the driver may face 16 months or two or three years in prison. Finally, if the driver caused serious bodily injury, they may face up to one year in jail or three, five, or seven years in prison.