Failing to Stop for an Officer
AS 28.35.182 — a class A misdemeanor, a class C felony with reckless driving, a crash or an injury
Failing to stop in the second degree is knowingly failing to stop, as soon as practical and in a reasonably safe way, when a peace officer signals or asks a driver, pilot or boat operator to stop. It is a class A misdemeanor.
Who handles this in Alaska: Alaska Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service; and legal aid programs and the state offices, listed in the Alaska directory.
- Driving recklessly while doing it.
- Committing vehicle theft in the first or second degree while doing it.
- A crash, or someone seriously hurt, because of the driving.
Any one of those makes it failing to stop in the first degree, a class C felony.
An officer who could not be recognized. It is a defense if the officer was in a vehicle without the required police lights and siren and not marked so a reasonable person would know it, or was on foot without a uniform, badge or other sign of authority that made them reasonably identifiable as an officer.
Sources for this section (1)
- AS 28.35.182 — Failure to stop at direction of peace officer
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Alaska attorney.