Resisting Arrest
RSA 642:2 — physical interference is a misdemeanor, words alone are not
A person is guilty of a misdemeanor who knowingly or purposely physically interferes with someone recognized to be a law enforcement official, a probation or parole officer included, who is trying to arrest or detain that person or another, whether or not there is a legal basis for the arrest.
Who handles this in New Hampshire: New Hampshire Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service; and legal aid programs and the state offices, listed in the New Hampshire directory.Holding a paper like this? Read my paper can read one for you, free with an account.
Words are not resisting. Verbal protestations alone do not constitute resisting arrest or detention.
Resisting is a class B felony if it causes serious bodily injury to another person.
Using intimidation, force or violence, or other unlawful conduct to hinder a public servant in an official function, or to retaliate for one, is a misdemeanor under a separate section. Refusing to submit to arrest is charged under the resisting section, not that one.
The state's own sections are not the only measure of police force. Under the Fourth Amendment, the Supreme Court of the United States has held that force used in an arrest, a stop or any other seizure is judged by objective reasonableness, from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene rather than with hindsight, and that deadly force may not be used to stop a fleeing suspect unless the officer has probable cause to believe the suspect poses a significant threat of death or serious physical injury to the officer or others. Those holdings are a floor: a state's own constitution and statutes can give more protection than they do, never less.
Sources for this section (4)
- RSA 642:2 — Resisting Arrest or Detention
- RSA 642:1 — Obstructing Government Administration
- Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386 (1989) — Force during a seizure is judged by objective reasonableness from the officer's perspective at the time
- Tennessee v. Garner, 471 U.S. 1 (1985) — Deadly force against a fleeing suspect is unreasonable absent probable cause of a significant threat of death or serious injury
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed New Hampshire attorney.