Obstruction and public order charges are the offenses that arise out of the encounter itself: resisting an officer, fleeing, disorderly conduct, loitering, tampering with evidence. They are among the most charged offenses in Florida, they are often added on top of another arrest or filed when a stop turns up nothing else, and they rest on an officer’s account of a fast-moving moment, which is exactly why they are so often defensible.
I defend these charges across the Tampa Bay area and Florida’s Gulf Coast, in Pinellas, Hillsborough, Pasco, Manatee, Sarasota, and DeSoto counties. Here is how the charges break down and where the defense lives.
The Offenses at a Glance
| Offense | Statute | Degree |
|---|---|---|
| Resisting an officer without violence | 843.02 | First-degree misdemeanor |
| Resisting an officer with violence | 843.01 | Third-degree felony |
| Fleeing or eluding | 316.1935 | Third-degree felony, up to first-degree |
| Disorderly conduct | 877.03 | Second-degree misdemeanor |
| Disorderly intoxication | 856.011 | Second-degree misdemeanor |
| Loitering or prowling | 856.021 | Second-degree misdemeanor |
| Tampering with physical evidence | 918.13 | Third-degree felony |
Several of these can be enhanced by the facts, and most can be added on top of another charge. Statutes and holdings last verified June 2026.
I began as an Assistant Public Defender in Florida’s Thirteenth Judicial Circuit, in Tampa, where resisting and obstruction are among the most charged offenses in the system. They are often added on top of another arrest, or they are the only charge when the stop did not produce anything else, and they are routinely overcharged. The thread running through all of them is the same: the State has to prove the officer was in the lawful execution of a legal duty, not merely on the job, and that is where these cases are won. Learn more about my background.
The Charges
Three of these charges are broken down on their own page here. Resisting and fleeing are covered in their natural homes and linked just below.
Two related charges live in other sections, since that is where they fit best. Resisting an officer, with and without violence, is covered alongside battery on an officer in violent crimes, and fleeing or eluding, always a felony, is covered in criminal traffic.
The Common Thread: Was the Officer Acting Lawfully?
For most of these charges, the State has to prove the officer was in the lawful execution of a legal duty, not merely on the job. That distinction matters. If the underlying stop, detention, or arrest was unlawful, there was no lawful duty to obstruct, and a resisting or obstruction charge built on it can be defeated. That is why the search and seizure questions are so often the heart of an obstruction case, and why these charges should never be treated as automatic just because an officer was involved.
These Charges Get Added On
Resisting and disorderly charges are rarely the start of a case. They get tacked onto a traffic stop, a domestic call, or a street encounter, and they give prosecutors extra pressure in plea talks. Pulling those add-on counts apart, and forcing the State to prove each one on its own, often changes the shape of the whole case, including the more serious charge underneath.
How I Defend These Cases
I start with the lawfulness of the encounter, because so much flows from it, then test the specific element each charge turns on: whether the officer was in a lawful duty, whether the conduct was willful, whether words were protected speech, whether there was an actual public disturbance, and whether the State can prove the knowledge a tampering or fleeing charge requires. Where these counts are stacked, I work to separate them so one does not drag up the exposure on the others.
Common Questions
What counts as obstructing or resisting an officer?
Resisting an officer means knowingly obstructing, opposing, or resisting an officer who is in the lawful execution of a legal duty. Without violence it is a first-degree misdemeanor under section 843.02, and it can be as little as giving a false name, refusing to be handcuffed, or fleeing a lawful detention. With violence it is a third-degree felony under section 843.01. The key question is always whether the officer was acting lawfully.
Do these charges get added on to other charges?
Constantly. Resisting, obstruction, disorderly conduct, and fleeing are some of the most charged offenses in Florida, and they are often stacked on top of whatever the arrest was originally about, or filed as the only charge when the stop turned up nothing else. Because they rest on an officer's account of a chaotic moment, they are also some of the most over-filed and most defensible.
Is the lawfulness of the stop or arrest important?
It is often the whole case. For most of these charges the State must prove the officer was in the lawful execution of a legal duty, not merely on the job. If the stop, detention, or arrest was unlawful, the duty was not lawful, and a resisting or obstruction charge built on it can fall. That makes the search-and-seizure questions central to defending these cases.
Which of these are felonies?
Resisting with violence under 843.01, fleeing or eluding under 316.1935, and tampering with physical evidence under 918.13 are felonies. Resisting without violence, disorderly conduct, disorderly intoxication, and loitering or prowling are misdemeanors. The line between the misdemeanor and felony versions, especially with resisting, is often where the real fight is.
Can these charges be kept off my record?
Often there are paths to that, especially for the misdemeanors and for a first offense. Diversion or pretrial intervention, a reduction, a withholding of adjudication, and later sealing are all possibilities depending on the charge and your history. Because resisting and disorderly charges so often rest on a single officer's version of events, they are frequently good candidates to fight or resolve favorably.
Related: Resisting an officer, Fleeing or eluding, Disorderly conduct and disorderly intoxication, Loitering or prowling, Tampering with evidence, and Search and seizure.
This page is general information about Florida law, not legal advice, and it does not create an attorney-client relationship. These offenses are governed by chapters 843, 316, 856, 877, and 918, Florida Statutes, and the degrees and elements can change, so they should be confirmed against current law. Every case turns on its own facts, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
