The offence of obstructing a police officer is often laid during a police operation, during which an individual attacks the officers verbally or physically, resists arrest or obstructs their work in any way. For instance, obstruction can mean simply not identifying oneself when legally being required to do so or intervening during a person’s arrest by a police officer.
The definition of obstructing a police officer is provided in Section 129 of the Criminal Code. It is an indictable offence liable to maximum imprisonment of 6 months or of 2 years by summary conviction.
A person found guilty of obstruction can request an absolute discharge under certain circumstances. See the following examples of cases of obstructing a police officer pleaded by lawyers of our firm.
The means of defence pleaded by criminal lawyers against a charge of obstruction are many, the main ones being the defendant denying having had the intention of obstructing the police officers or having a version of the story that contradicts what the police claimed about what really happened.
