Police Chase Results in Georgia Man’s Arrest with 40 Traffic Citations

A police chase resulted in 40 traffic citations and the arrest of Anzriell Antipatris Smith, a Floyd County man.

The police chase resulted in a PIT Maneuver and a crash.

In today's post, I will outline the law behind fleeing or attempting to elude police in the state of Georgia.

Fleeing or Attempting to Elude Police in Georgia

Fleeing or attempting to elude police in Georgia can be classified as a misdemeanor or a felony. The law, O.C.G.A. §40-6-395, outlines two different levels.

The first part of the law defines the misdemeanor level of fleeing as:

It shall be unlawful for any driver of a vehicle willfully to fail or refuse to bring his or her vehicle to a stop or otherwise to flee or attempt to elude a pursuing police vehicle or police officer when given a visual or an audible signal to bring the vehicle to a stop. The signal given by the police officer may be by hand, voice, emergency light, or siren. The officer giving such signal shall be in uniform prominently displaying his or her badge of office, and his or her vehicle shall be appropriately marked showing it to be an official police vehicle.

This is the misdemeanor version of the offense, however, a first time conviction of this is classified as a high and aggravated misdemeanor. A high and aggravated misdemeanor in Georgia can result in penalties of up to 12 months in jail and up to $5,000 in fines.

Further in the law is a list of circumstances that will elevate the offense of fleeing to a felony grade offense. The law states:

Any person violating the provisions of subsection (a) of this Code section who, while fleeing or attempting to elude a pursuing police vehicle or police officer in an attempt to escape arrest for any offense, other than a violation of this chapter not expressly provided for in this paragraph:

(i) Operates his or her vehicle in excess of 20 miles an hour above the posted speed limit;

(ii) Strikes or collides with another vehicle or a pedestrian;

(iii) Flees in traffic conditions which place the general public at risk of receiving serious injuries;

(iv) Commits a violation of paragraph (5) of subsection (a) of Code Section 40-6-391; or

(v) Leaves the state…

If fleeing the police under any one of the above circumstances, then a person is facing a felony charge of fleeing the police. This means that the punishment is elevated to up to 5 years of possible prison time as well as a fine up to $5,000.

Practice Note

If you or a loved one has been arrested for a traffic violation in Georgia, contact a Georgia DUI Lawyer today.