Updated September 2026
Resisting an officer without violence is one of the most common charges in our book, and it is almost never the only charge on the paperwork. Call (407) 254-5554 and we will read you everything they are being held on, not just this one.
What the charge actually is
Florida Statute 843.02 covers anyone who resists, obstructs or opposes an officer in the lawful execution of a legal duty without offering or doing violence. It is a first degree misdemeanor.
The word people get stuck on is resisting. It does not require a fight, or even a struggle. Pulling an arm away, walking off, giving a false name, refusing to follow an instruction during a stop, or getting between an officer and someone being arrested can all end up charged this way.
The version with violence is a different statute, 843.01, and a third degree felony. Under the Orange and Osceola bond schedule, resisting with violence must be set by a judge at first appearance rather than bonded at the jail.
What the bond usually is
The Ninth Judicial Circuit bond schedule, Administrative Order 2022-03-04 from March 2025, does not list resisting without violence by name. It falls under the general first degree misdemeanor amount, which is $500 where no force or threat of force against a person was involved, and $1,000 where there was.
Where it matters is the rest of the arrest. Resisting is rarely written on its own. It normally sits alongside whatever the original stop was about, and every charge carries its own bond. A $500 resisting bond attached to a $1,000 battery and a $2,500 drug charge is a $4,000 total, and that is the number that decides what you pay.
What it costs you
The premium is 10% of the bond with a $100 minimum per charge, set by Florida law. On resisting without violence alone, a $500 bond, you pay the $100 minimum. Across a stack of charges it will be more, and we quote the whole thing up front rather than one charge at a time.
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How fast they get out
Quickly, if resisting is the whole of it. The bond is low, there is usually no hold and the paperwork is short. The realistic delay is the jail’s own release process, which in Orange County can take up to 12 hours and stops during headcount and meals.
If one of the companion charges is a domestic violence offense, none of that applies. Florida law holds those until a judge sees the person. See domestic violence bail bonds.
Why this charge is worth taking seriously
People often assume a resisting charge will be dropped because nothing really happened. Sometimes it is. But it is still a first degree misdemeanor on an arrest record until it is resolved, and the way to resolve it is to show up to court with a lawyer, which means getting out first.
The thing that turns this from a small case into a real one is missing the first court date. That becomes a warrant, and then the next traffic stop ends in another arrest.
What we need to get started
- The full name and date of birth of the person in jail.
- Which county they are in.
- A phone number we can reach you on.
That is enough for us to look up the case, confirm the real bond amount and tell you exactly what it costs before you pay anything. Call (407) 254-5554. Our Orlando office is across the street from the Orange County Jail and we answer 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
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Tell us who is in jail and where. Our team calls you straight back, any hour of the day.
Other counties
We write bonds across Central Florida. Orange and Osceola share one bond schedule. Seminole, Brevard and other counties set their own, so the number can be different for the same charge. We have offices in Kissimmee and Sanford, and we post bonds across Brevard County by phone.
Related reading
- What bail actually costs in Florida, and the two laws that decide it.
- When does my obligation as a cosigner end?
General information, not legal advice. Bond amounts change and a judge can always set a different amount than the schedule.