Panel approves tougher penalties for resisting in vehicle, adds "moderate bodily injury" enhancement

The Senate Corrections and Criminal Law Committee voted 7-1 to advance an amended bill that raises penalties for resisting law enforcement in specified circumstances.

Representative Sean Quayle presented the bill and said it builds on prior reforms to Indiana’s criminal code. The committee adopted two floor amendments during the hearing. Amendment 3, described by the sponsor as aligning with recent Senate Bill 324 language, raises the felony level for resisting law enforcement using a vehicle from level 6 to level 5. Amendment 4 adds a separate enhancement: if the resisting offense causes “moderate bodily injury” to any person, the offense is elevated to a level 5 felony. Representative Quayle told the committee, “I have never understood in my life…being in a vehicle and leading the police on a chase,” and said he had “no tolerance for it.”

Senator Pohl (identified in testimony as opposing the breadth of the “moderate bodily injury” enhancement) questioned how courts would draw lines between minor and moderate injuries and warned the amendment could be applied inconsistently across counties. The committee made a technical motion to reconcile overlapping amendment language and asked legislative services (LSA) to clean up text before second reading. Mike Biberstein of the Indiana Sheriffs Association testified in support of the bill.

After roll-call voting on the amendments and the amended bill, the committee recorded a final 7-1 vote to advance the measure. Committee members said the bill must go to appropriations because of possible fiscal effects.