Resisting Arrest
AS 11.56.700 — force, criminal mischief or a risk of injury to stop an arrest, a class A misdemeanor
A person commits resisting or interfering with arrest if, knowing an officer is making an arrest and meaning to prevent it, they resist their own arrest or interfere with someone else's by force, by any degree of criminal mischief, or by any means that creates a substantial risk of physical injury. It is a class A misdemeanor.
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Even if the arrest is unlawful. No one may use force to resist an arrest by someone they know, or who reasonably appears, to be a peace officer, whether the arrest is lawful or not, unless the officer's force goes beyond what the law allows an officer. Even then the force used in response is held to the limits of self-defense.
Sources for this section (2)
- AS 11.56.700 — Resisting or interfering with arrest
- AS 11.81.400 — Justification: Use of force in resisting or interfering with arrest
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Alaska attorney.