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Disorderly Conduct Resisting Arrest, How Should I Plead

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visualvill

Junior Member
South Carolina.

What is the name of your state (South Carolina).

I was recently charged with Disorderly Conduct and Resisting Arrest in Charleston, South Carolina. I came out of a bar at 1:15 AM to very crowded and loud streets walking with a male friend of mine and two females. We passed two females on the sidewalk as we were passing they started talking loudly about my friends hair, because he has a crazy afro.
I felt that their comments were very rude especially since we could hear them clearly, so being the classy guy that I am, I yelled "**** y'all Hoes". I was not looking directly at them when I said it, but rather to my side so that it would display an arrogance that although I was confronting them, I didn't want to give them too much attention because I'm cool like that. (Sidenote: It must be said that I in no way take myself seriously, I'm a real jokester).
There was an officer standing close by to my rear right who was giving someone a sobriety test, according to his arresting statement. In seconds, the officer grabbed my arm from behind and starting pushing me towards his car about 15 feet a way. My reaction was like what????!! what's going here?! What is the problem?? When we made it to his car he forced my front against the car and then said that I was under arrest for disorderly conduct for cussing in public an act committed against the city of Charleston as in ordnance # blah blah. So I'm thinking, I'm sure we can talk about this, so I try to turn around to talk to him, because even at this point I have not even had a good look at him face because he had my hands behind my back, so I break my hands free with little effort, and then I turn around where I could talk to him and boom that's when he hit me with some pepper spray point blank to the eyes, ouch!! I was completely immobilized from the OC, although in his report he wrote that I was subdued by OC and a single strike to the common peroneal, but I was not actually struck. The entire incident happened in under one minute.
His statement says that I "actively pulling his arms violently from the handcuffs and backing away" (although my back was towards him the whole time except when I turned around and immediately was peppersprayed). "He continued to resist arrest, backing into a nearby partrol vehicle yelling "no" (didn't happen). The deployment of OC and a single knee strike to common peroneal subdued (me) where he was then taken into custody.
When the arresting officer and another cop who was with him were running my license, I heard the officer say that he thought I was yelling those obscenities at them, which I think would explain why he even went out of his way to arrest me for cussing, while many other people were no doubt doing the same thing (late night bar hopping). He was obviously very pissed at me for some reason because the first thing he did after cuffing me was smack my hat off of my head and then he grabbed my wallet from my back pocket, without opening it or anything and then just threw it violently on the ground.
I'm not sure how to plead, any advice???
 


visualvill

Junior Member
oh yeah...

I guess I should say I can't afford a lawyer and there are no guarantees that I will qualify for a Public Defender, according to the Judge. (I went to court to today for the second time, the first I asked for a continuance to get statements. Today the officer asked for a continuance and did not come. ) I've been flying blind. What should I DO????

Never been in any sort of trouble or even been questioned by police like that.
 

FlyingRon

Senior Member
Continue the attempts to get a private defender if you are indigent. Public defenders are for those who can not pay not for those unwilling to pay. Generally, once a cop tells you are under arrest it is not time to argue with him. Otherwise scrape together the money for a lawyer (many take credit cards in this day and age).

Otherwise, you're going to have to go on your rather not convincing statement of facts in your pro se arguments. You can ask questions of the officer to elicit statements but your cross-examination is not the time to argue with the officer or to make statements that you don't feel what he is saying is true.

Your ability to recall the facts is doubtful based on your state of intoxication at the time (are you still intoxicated now, you write like you're either six years old or drunk. The people here are donating their time to answer you and making your posts near illegible isn't going to help you get answers).

You don't seem to have any defense to the disorderly conduct charge. Profanity alone (while the statute says this is disorderly) isn't usually held to be sufficient. However, your being intoxicated at the time (and general disorderly or boisterousness which you call having a good time) iss.
 
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visualvill

Junior Member
Thank You

Thanks so much for your time, and I apologize for the illegibility.

What exactly could a lawyer help me with and about how much would it cost ?

Also, am I better off just pleading guilty to both charges?

I do have written statements from witnesses.

Thank you again for your time and efforts.
 

visualvill

Junior Member
You don't seem to have any defense to the disorderly conduct charge. Profanity alone (while the statute says this is disorderly) isn't usually held to be sufficient. However, your being intoxicated at the time (and general disorderly or boisterousness which you call having a good time) iss.
Does it make a difference that there was no general disorderly or boisterous conduct other than the obscenities?
 

xylene

Senior Member
There is no reason to plead guilty unless there is going to be a consideration in the sentence.

Ask the prosecutor to drop the resisting arrest charges in exchange for a guilt plea on the disorderly conduct with a heavy fine and extensive community service.
 

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