Obstructing governmental administration by means of a self-defense spray device · as in force on May 31, 2026
§ 195.08 Obstructing governmental administration by means of a
self-defense spray device.
A person is guilty of obstructing governmental administration by means of a self-defense spray device when, with the intent to prevent a police officer or peace officer from performing a lawful duty, he causes temporary physical impairment to a police officer or peace officer by intentionally discharging a self-defense spray device, as defined in paragraph fourteen of subdivision a of section 265.20 of this chapter, thereby causing such temporary physical impairment.
Obstructing governmental administration by means of a self-defense spray device is a class D felony.
With intent to stop a police officer or peace officer from performing a lawful duty, a person commits this offense by intentionally discharging a self-defense spray device and causing the officer temporary physical impairment. ★ It is a class D felony.
Marked in the text: penalties, time limits, sums of money. Editorial emphasis added by this edition; it does not appear in the statute as enacted.
This provision appears in Volume 4 — The Court Clerk: Penal Law; Volume 1 — The Court Officer in Plain English; Volume 3 — The Court Officer: Penal Law; Volume 3 — Your Career: Penal Law in Plain English.