Barnes v. State
2011 Ind. LEXIS 353
| Ind. | 2011Background
- Barnes was convicted in Indiana for battery on a police officer, resisting law enforcement, and disorderly conduct after a confrontational domestic dispute on Nov 18, 2007.
- A 911 call about domestic violence prompted officers Reed and Henry to respond; Barnes blocked the apartment doorway and resisted entry.
- Officers attempted to enter; Barnes shoved Officer Reed during the entry attempt; a struggle ensued and Barnes was tasered.
- Barnes challenged the trial court’s refusal to instruct jurors on a common-law right to reasonably resist unlawful police entry; he also challenged the sufficiency of the evidence for his convictions.
- Court of Appeals affirmed error in not instructing on the right to resist and held disorderly conduct conviction unsupported; Indiana Supreme Court granted transfer.
- The Indiana Supreme Court held that there is no right to reasonably resist unlawful police entry and affirmed Barnes’s convictions.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Right to reasonably resist unlawful police entry | Barnes: right exists under common law | State: no such right under modern policy | No such right recognized; instruction not error |
| Disorderly conduct sufficiency | Speech was political; protected by First/Indiana Constitution | Speech not political or impairment de minimis | Sufficient evidence for disorderly conduct |
| Battery on a law enforcement officer sufficiency | Resisting unlawful entry justifies action against officer | No right to resist unlawful entry; battery proven | Battery proven; confirms conviction |
| Resisting arrest sufficiency | Barnes resisted officers during arrest | Resisting upheld by battery finding | Resisting an officer upheld by battery finding |
Key Cases Cited
- Bad Elk v. United States, 177 U.S. 529 (1900) (recognizes right to resist unlawful arrest in proper cases)
- United States v. Di Re, 332 U.S. 581 (1948) (undoubted right to resist unlawful arrest; proper cases upheld)
- Casselman v. State, 472 N.E.2d 1310 (Ind. Ct. App. 1985) (recognized limited right to resist unlawful entry into home)
- United States v. Santana, 427 U.S. 38 (1976) (hot pursuit allows entry without warrant)
- Holder v. State, 847 N.E.2d 930 (Ind. 2006) (exigent circumstances may justify entry)
- Payton v. New York, 445 U.S. 573 (1980) (home entry protections under Fourth Amendment)
- Miller v. United States, 357 U.S. 301 (1958) (entry without proper process discussed in context of search/arrest)