Williams v. State

The defendant's flight did not constitute obstruction, because the arresting officer, did not activate his lights or siren, attempt to stop the defendant's vehicle or order the defendant to halt when he fled.

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A jury found Chalmus Williams guilty of obstructing a law enforcement officer and driving with a suspended license. Williams appeals, challenging the sufficiency of the evidence, asserting that the trial court improperly charged the jury on obstruction and erred in admitting similar transaction evidence, and alleging ineffective assistance of counsel. For reasons that follow, we affirm in part and reverse in part. 1. “On appeal from a criminal conviction, we view the evidence in a light most favorable to the verdict, and the defendant no longer enjoys the presumption of innocence.”1 We neither evaluate witness credibility nor weigh the evidence, and we affirm the verdict if there was sufficient evidence “for a rational trier of fact to find the defendant guilty of the charged offense beyond a reasonable doubt.”2 Viewed accordingly, the evidence shows that at approximately 4:30 a.m. on January 27, 2005, Officer Kessler of the City of Perry police department was on duty in a marked patrol vehicle when he saw a driver in a light brown Ford Aerostar van drive past him. Officer Kessler knew that a similar vehicle, owned by Connie Davis, was sometimes driven by Williams, whose driver’s license had been suspended.

Officer Kessler followed the vehicle in order to determine if Williams was driving. While following the vehicle, Officer Kessler did not activate his emergency lights or attempt to stop the vehicle. The vehicle accelerated and turned into a trailer park where Williams lived. The driver then drove off the road behind the trailer in which Williams lived, and the male driver fled the vehicle, leaving the engine running. The driver was wearing blue jeans, a blue jacket, and a hat. Officer Kessler believed, based on the driver’s height and weight, that the driver was Williams, although he did not see the driver’s face. He attempted to pursue the driver on foot, but stopped because he did not have a flashlight. Officer Kessler never ordered the fleeing driver to stop.

Williams v. State

The defendant's flight did not constitute obstruction, because the arresting officer, did not activate his lights or siren, attempt to stop the defendant's vehicle or order the defendant to halt when he fled.

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