Divided Court reverses and vacates conviction for impeding a police officer, based on refusal to provide license and registration at traffic stop.

State v. Berard, 2019 VT 65  [filed September 27, 2019

REIBER, C.J. Defendant Stephanie Berard appeals the trial court's denial of her motion for judgment of acquittal following her conviction for impeding or hindering a police officer. We reverse and vacate defendant's conviction.

According to our prior holdings, a defendant violates § 3001 if the defendant (1) takes an action that the defendant has no legal right to do and (2) that action actually results in impeding an officer in the lawful execution of the officer's duties.

Here,the officer instructed defendant to provide him with her driver's license, registration, and proof of insurance. Defendant replied that she she would not provide them defendant was "[c]ombative" and "uncooperative" and her voice was "escalated and raised."

There is no question that defendant's refusal was unlawful. However, we do not conclude that defendant's refusal may, without more, constitute a violation of § 3001. We hold that a civil violation of the motor vehicle code, on its own, may not provide the basis for an impeding-officer offense, even when that violation is intentional.

CARROLL, J., dissenting..The majority concedes that defendant had no legal right to refuse to provide her driver's license and registration to a police officer who pulled her over after having witnessed her commit three motor-vehicle-code violations. Nonetheless the majority vacates defendant's conviction because it assumes that the Legislature did not intend that civil violations could provide the basis for impeding an officer.. I dissent and would affirm the jury's guilty verdict because he State, established each of the essential elements of hindering a law enforcement officer beyond a reasonable doubt.

Defendant had no legal right to refuse to provide her license and registration to the trooper and this impeded him in the lawful execution of his duties: she unjustifiably delayed him at this traffic stop and she forced him to summon and wait for another officer to arrive (who was then diverted from his own work). The Legislature, apparently mindful that it is imperative that Vermonters recognize and respect the authority of our law enforcement officers and obey their legal requests when failing to do so would be unlawful, chose to make impeding an officer in this manner a felony. I therefore would affirm defendant's conviction for impeding an officer and I dissent.