BATTERY ON LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER (F.S. § 784.07); RESISTING OFFICER WITH VIOLENCE (F.S. § 843.01)
PRETRIAL INTERVENTION (PTI)
Santa Rosa County, FL
April 10, 2026
Client was charged in Santa Rosa County with Battery on Specified Personnel (Law Enforcement Officer) (F.S. § 784.07) and Resisting Officer With Violence (F.S. § 843.01), each a third-degree felony carrying up to 5 years in Florida State Prison and a $5,000 fine. Cases involving alleged violence against law enforcement are among the most difficult in the criminal justice system. Prosecutors typically charge them aggressively, plea offers tend to involve adjudication and prison time, and judges — sensitive to the appearance of leniency in cases involving alleged violence against officers — often impose harsher sentences than the underlying facts would otherwise support. A conviction on either count would have produced a permanent felony record with devastating consequences: loss of voting and firearms rights, ineligibility for many forms of employment and housing, and a record that follows the client into every future encounter with law enforcement. The client's photographs of injuries sustained in the underlying encounter, body-worn camera footage, and the contemporaneous incident report told a more complicated story than the initial charging document suggested.
The defense team obtained and reviewed all available discovery — the law enforcement narratives, arrest report, body-worn camera footage, and photographs of the client's injuries — and conducted independent investigation into the circumstances of the underlying encounter. We identified factual and legal issues with the State's ability to prove the specific elements of each felony charge beyond a reasonable doubt, including [REDACTED] questions about the sequence and reasonableness of the force involved on both sides of the encounter. We prepared a detailed defense memorandum and engaged in sustained negotiation with the State Attorney's Office, presenting the full evidentiary picture rather than the abbreviated version contained in the charging document. After persistent advocacy, we secured the client's entry into the Pretrial Intervention (PTI) program. Upon successful completion of PTI, both felony charges will be dismissed and the client will be eligible to seal or expunge the arrest record. The client avoided two felony convictions, avoided state prison exposure, preserved voting and firearms rights, and obtained a clear path to a clean record. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes; each case depends on its facts and circumstances.