Penal Code 241 c PC – Assaulting a Police Officer

Penal Code 241c PC is the California statute that makes it a crime for a person to commit an assault on a police officer or other public safety responder who is engaged in the performance of his or her duties. This offense is a misdemeanor punished by a sentence of up to one year in county jail and a fine of up to $2000.00.

An assault is when someone commits (or attempts to commit) a violent injury on another.

241(c) PC states that “when an assault is committed against the person of a peace officer, firefighter, emergency medical technician, mobile intensive care paramedic, lifeguard, process server, traffic officer, code enforcement officer, animal control officer, or search and rescue member engaged in the performance of his or her duties, or a physician or nurse engaged in rendering emergency medical care outside a hospital, clinic, or other health care facility, and the person committing the offense knows or reasonably should know that the victim is a peace officer, firefighter, emergency medical technician, mobile intensive care paramedic, lifeguard, process server, traffic officer, code enforcement officer, animal control officer, or search and rescue member engaged in the performance of his or her duties, or a physician or nurse engaged in rendering emergency medical care, the assault is punishable by a fine not exceeding two thousand dollars ($2,000), or by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, or by both the fine and imprisonment.”

Examples

• throwing a rock at a cop.
• taking a swing at a police officer, while resisting arrest, but the officer ducks.
• spitting in the face of a peace officer.

Defenses

An accused can challenge an assault charge with a legal defense. Common defenses include:

• no assault,
• no police officer, and/or
• self-defense.

Penalties

A violation of 241c PC is a misdemeanor. This is opposed to a felony or an infraction.

The offense is punishable by:

• custody in county jail for up to one year, and/or
• a maximum fine of $2,000.

A judge can award misdemeanor (or summary) probation in lieu of jail time.

Our California criminal defense attorneys will highlight the following in this article:

• 1. When is assaulting a police officer a crime?
  • 1.1. Application of force
  • 1.2. Other professionals included
• 2. Are there legal defenses?
  • 2.1. No assault
  • 2.2. No police officer
  • 2.3. Self-defense
• 3. What are the penalties for 241 c PC?
• 4. Are there immigration consequences?
• 5. Can a person get a conviction expunged?
• 6. Does a conviction affect gun rights?
• 7. Are there related offenses?
  • 7.1. Battery on a police officer – PC 243
  • 7.2. Resisting arrest – PC 148
  • 7.3. Resisting an executive officer – PC 69

A PC 241 charge of assaulting a police officer can result in a misdemeanor

1. When is assaulting a police officer a crime?

A prosecutor must prove the following to convict a person under Penal Code 241c:

1. the defendant did an act that by its nature would probably result in the application of force to a person,
2. the accused did the act willfully,
3. when the defendant acted, a reasonable person in his shoes could realize that the act would probably result in the application of force to someone,
4. when the accused acted, he had the ability to apply force to a person,
5. when the defendant acted, the person assaulted was lawfully performing his duties as a peace officer, and
6. when the defendant acted, he knew that the person assaulted was a peace officer.¹

Note that, under this statute, someone commits an act “willfully” when he does it:

• willingly, or
• on purpose.²

Questions often arise under this statute on the meaning of:

• application of force, and
• peace officer.

1.1. Application of force

The terms:

• “application of force,” and
• “apply force”

mean to touch someone in a harmful or offensive manner. The slightest touching can be enough for an assault if it is done in a rude or angry way.³

Example: A police officer is trying to talk to Jerome about a recent crime in his neighborhood. Jerome is irate because he thinks the cop is trying to blame him of the offense. He starts yelling and then approaches the officer. Jerome points his finger into the cop’s chest and yells, “get out of my face.”

Here, Jerome could be guilty of assaulting a police officer. His finger into the officer’s chest is enough for a “harmful touching.” Jerome was visibly angry, and he acted in a rude manner.

Note that for an assault to occur, a “touching” does not have to cause pain or injury of any kind.⁴

Also, a prosecutor does not have to prove any of the following for there to be an assault:

• the defendant actually touched someone,
• the accused intended to use force against someone when he acted,
• the alleged victim was injured by the touching.⁵

Example: The police are called to a bar to break up a fight. Mike sees an officer talking to one of his friends. He wants to scare the cop away, so he throws a beer bottle in his direction. The bottle does not hit the cop and Mike never intended for it to hit him. He just wanted it to cause fear.

Here, Mike is guilty of assaulting an officer. There is no requirement that an actual “touching” occur. An attempt to touch is enough. The throwing of a bottle was an attempt to apply force. And, there is no requirement that a person caused harm or intended to cause harm.

1.2. Other professionals included

241 PC is a form of aggravated assault in California. The code actually uses the term “peace officer” rather than “police officer.”

“Peace officer” is a broad term that includes police officers. A peace officer also includes a:

• firefighter,
• emergency medical technician (EMT) or paramedic,
• lifeguard,
• process server,
• traffic officer,
• animal control officer,
• search and rescue member, or
• doctor or nurse providing emergency medical care.⁶

This means it is a violation of this section if an accused assaults any of these professionals.

Fortunately, there are legal defenses…

2. Are there legal defenses?

A defendant can try to overcome an assault charge with a legal defense.

Three common defenses are:

1. no assault,
2. no police officer, and/or
3. self-defense.

2.1. No assault

As discussed above, as assault is a specific act that involves the application of force. This means that it is always a defense for a defendant to show that his acts did not amount to an “assault.” Perhaps, for example, the accused:

• shouted at a police officer, and
• never applied force or attempted to apply force.

2.2. No police officer

Recall that this statute only applies to “police officers,” and more broadly to “peace officers.” Therefore, it is a defense for a defendant to say that:

• while he may have committed an assault on someone,
• that person was not a “peace officer.”

Note, though, that the accused could still be found guilty under Penal Code 240 PC. This is California’s general assault law.

2.3 Self-defense

This defense applies when a police officer breaks the law and uses excessive force on a person. In these situations, a person can use self-defense to protect himself.

This defense will work if the accused:

• believed that he was in “imminent danger,”
• believed that force was necessary to stop the danger, and
• used an appropriate level of force in defense.⁷

3. What are the penalties for 241 c PC?

Assaulting a peace officer is a misdemeanor.

The offense is punishable by:

• custody in county jail for up to one year, and/or
• a maximum fine of $2,000.⁸

4. Are there immigration consequences?

A conviction of assault on a police officer does not impact a person’s immigration status.

California law says that some criminal convictions will cause a non-citizen to be:

• deported, or
• marked as inadmissible.

An example involves a conviction for an aggravated felony.

PC 241 c violations, though, do not have this effect.

5. Can a person get a conviction expunged?

A person can get an expungement if convicted of assaulting a peace officer.

This is true provided that the defendant successfully completes:

• probation, or
• his jail term (whichever was imposed).

An expungement is favorable since it:

• removes many of the hardships,
• associated with a conviction.

6. Does a conviction affect gun rights?

A conviction under this statute does not impact a person’s gun rights.

Some California crimes will cause a defendant to lose his right to:

• own a gun, or
• possess a gun.

An example is any crime that is charged as a felony.

Assaulting a police officer, though, will not produce either of these results.

7. Are there related offenses?

There are three crimes related to assaulting an officer. These are:

1. battery on a police officer – PC 243,
2. resisting arrest – PC 148, and
3. resisting an executive officer – PC 69.

7.1. Battery on a police officer – PC 243

Penal Code 243 PC makes it a crime for a person to:

1. willfully and unlawfully touch a peace officer in a harmful manner, and
2. do so while the officer is engaged in the performance of his duties.

Unlike Penal Code 241 c, there must be an actual touching for a crime under this statute.

7.2. Resisting arrest – PC 148

Penal Code 148 PC is the California statute that makes it a crime for a person to:

1. willfully resist or obstruct a police officer, or EMT, and
2. do so in the performance of his official duties.

It is not a crime, though, if a person is:

• acting in self-defense,
• to unlawful police aggression.

7.3. Resisting an executive officer – PC 69

Penal Code 69 PC is the California statute that makes it a crime for a person to:

1. try to prevent an executive officer from performing his duties, or
2. resist an executive officer in the performance of his duties.

An executive officer is defined as:

• a government official who may use his own discretion,
• in performing his duties.

For additional help…

Call us for help at (855) LAW-FIRM

For additional guidance or to discuss your case with a criminal defense attorney, we invite you to contact us at Shouse Law Group.

For information on assault laws in Nevada or Colorado, please see our articles on:

• “NRS 200.471 – Nevada Assault and Battery Laws,” and
• “Colorado Assault Laws.”

Legal References: