Interfering with duties of public servant

[Motok1m]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? TEXAS


I posted up at an intersection on the sidewalk (on foot, not driving) with a poster that read "Cops Ahead", about 30 minutes later a cop shows up and wrote me a ticket for "Interfering with duties of public servant" and took my sign. Is this really illegal?

[HomeGuru]

Originally Posted by Motok1m

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? TEXAS


I posted up at an intersection on the sidewalk (on foot, not driving) with a poster that read "Cops Ahead", about 30 minutes later a cop shows up and wrote me a ticket for "Interfering with duties of public servant" and took my sign. Is this really illegal?

**A: I would vigorously contest this and force them to prove how the sign interferred with their duties. And file a counterclaim of theft of your sign.
Were you expressing your freedom of speech?

[Motok1m]

Originally Posted by HomeGuru

**A: I would vigorously contest this and force them to prove how the sign interferred with their duties. And file a counterclaim of theft of your sign.
Were you expressing your freedom of speech?

I asked the officer to write me a receipt for confiscating my sign, he refused, but noted "sign" in notes section. And counterclaim, do i need to do this when i see the judge, or go downtown and file it? I was thinking i may need to hire an attorney that works with civil right, am i in the right direction?

[Wirelessany1]

Originally Posted by HomeGuru

**A: I would vigorously contest this and force them to prove how the sign interferred with their duties. And file a counterclaim of theft of your sign.
Were you expressing your freedom of speech?

I could totally think of a million things I'd rather do, than walk up and down the street with a sign on my back. I do have to say that it must have been a riot to see

[HomeGuru]

Originally Posted by Wirelessany1

I could totally think of a million things I'd rather do, than walk up and down the street with a sign on my back. I do have to say that it must have been a riot to see

**A: I hope the OP was not wearing a hamburger costume at the time.

[Motok1m]

Not sure what an OP is, but there was not hamburger costumes that i witnessed.

ANd i was not walking down the street, just standing at the corner holding the sign, not on my back. Im usually not one to do this, but when my radar detector goes off three corners in a row, im not too happy.

[CdwJava]

Originally Posted by Motok1m

Not sure what an OP is, but there was not hamburger costumes that i witnessed.

ANd i was not walking down the street, just standing at the corner holding the sign, not on my back. Im usually not one to do this, but when my radar detector goes off three corners in a row, im not too happy.

"OP" is "Original Poster".

And if you do not like the sound of your radar detector, turn it off.

You really had the time to kill to stand there with such a sign? Must be nice ....

This would appear to be the section:

Sec. 38.15. INTERFERENCE WITH PUBLIC DUTIES. (a) A person commits an offense if the person with criminal negligence interrupts, disrupts, impedes, or otherwise interferes with:

(1) a peace officer while the peace officer is performing a duty or exercising authority imposed or granted by law;

(2) a person who is employed to provide emergency medical services including the transportation of ill or injured persons while the person is performing that duty;

(3) a fire fighter, while the fire fighter is fighting a fire or investigating the cause of a fire;

(4) an animal under the supervision of a peace officer, corrections officer, or jailer, if the person knows the animal is being used for law enforcement, corrections, prison or jail security, or investigative purposes;

(5) the transmission of a communication over a citizen's band radio channel, the purpose of which communication is to inform or inquire about an emergency;

(6) an officer with responsibility for animal control in a county or municipality, while the officer is performing a duty or exercising authority imposed or granted under Chapter 821 or 822, Health and Safety Code; or

(7) a person who:

(A) has responsibility for assessing, enacting, or enforcing public health, environmental, radiation, or safety measures for the state or a county or municipality;

(B) is investigating a particular site as part of the person's responsibilities under Paragraph (A);

(C) is acting in accordance with policies and procedures related to the safety and security of the site described by Paragraph (B); and

(D) is performing a duty or exercising authority imposed or granted under the Agriculture Code, Health and Safety Code, Occupations Code, or Water Code.

(b) An offense under this section is a Class B misdemeanor.

(c) It is a defense to prosecution under Subsection (a)(1) that the conduct engaged in by the defendant was intended to warn a person operating a motor vehicle of the presence of a peace officer who was enforcing Subtitle C, Title 7, Transportation Code.

(d) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that the interruption, disruption, impediment, or interference alleged consisted of speech only.

(e) In this section, "emergency" means a condition or circumstance in which an individual is or is reasonably believed by the person transmitting the communication to be in imminent danger of serious bodily injury or in which property is or is reasonably believed by the person transmitting the communication to be in imminent danger of damage or destruction.

I suspect that subsection (d) would apply here, though TX case law may actually make your actions criminal ... TX can be a different world, sometimes.

- Carl

[You Are Guilty]

While I can certainly understand the officer's uh, "concern", actions like yours have pretty universally been held to be protected under the First Amendment. I'd have to check the case law to see if Texas follows suit, but I strongly suspect they do.

I doubt a counter suit is a good idea, but maybe a local reporter might be interested in doing an expose. If not, even in a case like this, a lawyer is always a good idea when its a criminal charge that you're facing.

Good luck.