Marion County Man Found Not Guilty on Resisting Arrest Charges

We recently helped a 28-year-old man who was charged with two counts of resisting law enforcement in Marion County. In Indiana, resisting law enforcement is a class A misdemeanor and one count is punishable by up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $5,000 if convicted.

At the time of the alleged offense, the man was in his front yard arguing with his wife. Someone called the police and reported the disturbance. When the police arrived, they saw the man and his wife arguing, but no laws were broken.

However, the police wanted to search the man for reasons of officer safety. Our client refused, was forcibly seized, and charged with resisting arrest. The man maintained his innocence – that he did not forcibly resist, obstruct, or interfere with law enforcement. He simply did not want to be searched because he was not breaking any laws.

He hired Marion County criminal defense lawyer Sean Hessler to represent him. Sean Hessler tried the case before a judge and argued that the initial seizure was illegal, thereby invalidating the resisting law enforcement charges. The judge found that the State did not have evidence to prove our client’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Ultimately, Sean represented the man in four court appearances to an optimal outcome.

The outcome of an individual case depends on a variety of factors unique to that case. Case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result in any similar or future case.