How do you distinguish obstruction of justice from resisting arrest?

• A. Obstruction refers to interfering with police duties; resisting arrest involves actively opposing lawful arrest or using force.
• B. Interfering with police duties is obstructing justice; resisting arrest involves actively opposing lawful arrest or using force.
• C. Obstruction is only a crime if violence is used.
• D. Resisting arrest is not a crime if the arrestee is innocent.

Answer: (B)

The main idea is to separate two different ways people can interact with police during enforcement: hindering the officer’s ability to do their job versus actively resisting being placed under arrest. Obstruction of justice (obstructing duties) covers any act that gets in the way of police performing their official tasks, and it can be nonviolent—like giving false information, concealing someone, or interfering with an officer’s duties during an investigation or other police work. Resisting arrest, on the other hand, specifically describes actively opposing an arrest or using force to prevent someone from being taken into custody. The key distinction is that obstruction is about hindering the officer’s work in a broad sense, while resisting arrest is about the person’s direct, active effort to avoid being arrested, usually during a lawful seizure. Therefore, this phrasing best captures the difference: obstructing duties equals obstruction, and resisting arrest equals actively opposing a lawful arrest or using force.