Quote:
Originally Posted by GunLawyer001
I have mixed feelings about this. Cops are often ignorant of the law, but most citizens are, who seem to believe that they have unlimited rights but no obligations. Most arrestees think that the arrest is unwarranted. Should we encourage them to resist using deadly force? Or should we demand that all citizens bow to the asserted au-thor-i-tay of whatever buffoon in blue seeks to slap on the cuffs? Either way, there's a potential for abuse. What should your busty girlfriend do when a stranger in uniform demands that she accept the cuffs and get in the back of the van, when she knows for a fact that she's done nothing illegal?
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The same way we have a "theoretical" right to revolt against a tyranical gov't, we should have the theoretical right to resist and repel unlawful arrest.
I don't see it as something that happens so often that it's a major issue. Resisting arrest is very risky no matter how you slice it (you will get hurt). If you're so positively sure that the arrest is unlawful, you should not be legally compelled to submit to it anyway, even if, as a practical matter, that might be a better course of action. If you're not sure or it turns out you were wrong, the thump on your head and additional charges for resisting should be enough to deter "routine" resistance (apart from those who resist arrest because they're violent people and not out of some misunderstanding of their rights).