What do i do if I am charged with assaulting a police officer?

Answer 1

In most jurisdictions I am aware of that is a felony criminal act. You will be formally charged at a preliminary hearing and if the charge is sustained by the judge, you will need a good criminal attorney or, if you qualify, the court will appoint a public defender for you.

Answer 2

In most commonlaw countries which include countries as diverse as the U.S.A , Canada , Australia, England , Wales , Nigeria, Uganda etc. Assaulting a police officer is a criminal offence, and more importantly a strict liability offence. This means that the onus is on the person accused to prove his/her innocence in order to avoid being found guilty and sentenced to a custodial term in prison. Both the courts and the police [ themselves] take a dim view of assaults on police officers. Although not strictly legal one can assume that most police forces would seek to employ all means at their disposal to at least extract the highest sentences the courts can impose in the circumstance, additionally in practice the police would load the charge sheet of a person accused of such an offence as much as possible in order to achieve their aim. Additionally being a strict liability offence the defence of not knowing that the person assaulted was a police officer is not available to the accused.