Flight From An Office Louisiana Laws
In Louisiana, the legal definition of flight from an officer can be found at Louisiana revised statute 108.1. It states the following:
No driver of a motor vehicle or operator of a watercraft shall intentionally refuse to bring a vehicle or watercraft to a stop knowing that he has been given a visual and audible signal to stop by a police officer when the officer has reasonable grounds to believe that the driver has committed an offense. The signal shall be given by an emergency light and a siren on a vehicle marked as a police vehicle or marked police watercraft.
Penalty Flight From An Officer
Whoever commits the crime of flight from an officer shall be fined not less than $150 to $500, or imprisoned for not more than 6 months, or both.
Aggravated Flight From an Officer
In Louisiana Aggravated Flight From An Officer is defined as the intentional refusal of a driver to bring a vehicle to a stop or of an operator to bring a watercraft to a stop, under circumstances wherein human life is endangered, knowing that he has been given a visual and audible signal to stop by a police officer when the officer has reasonable grounds to believe that the driver or operator has committed an offense. The signal shall be given by an emergency light and a siren on a vehicle marked as a police vehicle or marked police watercraft.
Circumstances wherein human life is endangered shall be any situation where the operator of the fleeing vehicle or watercraft commits at least two of the following acts:
(1) Leaves the roadway or forces another vehicle to leave the roadway.
(2) Collides with another vehicle or watercraft.
(3) Exceeds the posted speed limit by at least twenty-five miles per hour.
(4) Travels against the flow of traffic or in the case of watercraft, operates the watercraft in a careless manner.
(5) Fails to obey a stop sign or a yield sign.
(6) Fails to obey a traffic control signal device.
Penalty For Aggravated Flight From An Officer
Whoever commits aggravated flight from an officer shall be imprisoned at hard labor for not more than 5 years and may be fined not more than $2000.
Whoever commits the crime of aggravated flight from an officer that results in serious bodily injury shall be imprisoned at hard labor for not more than 10 years and may be fined not more than two thousand dollars.
This is a Crime of Violence
Definition
“Serious bodily injury” means bodily injury which involves unconsciousness, extreme physical pain or protracted and obvious disfigurement, or protracted loss or impairment of the function of a bodily member, organ, or mental faculty, or a substantial risk of death.
Legal Representation
If you have been arrested for flight from a police officer in Louisiana, contact a criminal defense attorney in New Orleans area.
Disclaimer:
Laws and policies can change at any time rendering the above information outdated or non-applicable. We strongly encourage you to look at City, Parish, and State statutes for the most recent laws and to consult a Louisiana licensed attorney.