House passes ‘Valentine’s Law,’ increasing penalties for fleeing, resisting, or interfering with arrest

      The Missouri House this week voted to increase the criminal penalties for resisting or interfering with an arrest, or fleeing from law enforcement.  The bill is named in honor of a St. Louis County Police Detective who was killed by a fleeing suspect, in 2021.

      “On December 21, 2021, Detective Valentine, my colleague and my friend, gave his life when he was killed by a fleeing felon who was purposely driving in oncoming traffic, fleeing from police.”

      That was the opening statement from Representative Justin Sparks (R-Wildwood), the sponsor of House Bill 1692.  Sparks was with the St. Louis County Police Department for nearly 15 years.  He knew Detective Tony Valentine personally, and was on the scene when he died. 

      “That felon, who had been arrested multiple times for violent felonies, took off and decided to drive his vehicle as fast as it would go, into oncoming traffic.  Well, in that oncoming traffic was Detective Valentine, and I believe that he saw what that fleeing felon was doing, and he willingly gave his life to stop that vehicle, that 2,000 or 3,000 weapon, from hitting the school bus that was behind him down the road.”

      Sparks was certainly not the only House member to speak in favor of the legislation with passion borne of personal experience.  Representative Lane Roberts (R-Joplin), whose career in law enforcement spans decades, including as Joplin Police Chief and the state’s Director of Public Safety, said he knows what it’s like to lose friends and to lose those under his command. 

      “When you look at their faces and you see the pain and you hear the anguish, and then you’re given an opportunity like this to actually do something about it, it would be irresponsible to the point of dereliction for us to fail to do something about it,” Roberts said. 

      “The idea that you can run down the road at 100 miles an hour in 4,000 pieces of metal and call it a misdemeanor is like saying that pointing a gun at somebody is a misdemeanor.  It’s a dangerous weapon and you’re putting people at risk, and there’s absolutely no excuse for it.  It is conduct that should be a felony.”

      In a display of the bill’s bipartisan support, Representative Robert Sauls (D-Kansas City), agreed.  His career includes time as both a Jackson County prosecutor, and as a public defender. 

      “There are a couple of offenses that I think, maybe, the penalty might be too harsh, and there are some where I think it is too light, and this is one that I think is, in particular, too light, because of what the ultimate harm may potentially be,” Sauls said.  “This offense has the potential to kill and harm people and I just think … it’s one of the few that I think is too soft.”

      “This applies to the violent felons who know exactly what they’re doing and who accelerate at extreme speeds into oncoming traffic, putting everybody at risk,” Sparks explained. 

      “This bill will make fleeing from police a felony, but only when doing so puts the public at risk of serious physical injury or death.  This will not apply to folks that are looking for a place to pull over, this will not apply to folks that are confused, this will not apply to folks that are a little unsure if it’s a legitimate police officer behind them.  They can continue at the speed limit until they find a well-lit place to pull over for the traffic stop.”

      A person would violate Valentine’s Law if they reasonably know law enforcement is trying to stop them and they flee at a speed 10 miles per hour or more greater than the posted speed limit, and if, in doing so, they pose a risk of physical harm or death to any person. 

      The offense would be a class D felony with a one-year minimum prison sentence.  It would increase to a class B felony if, by fleeing, they cause serious physical injury to another person.  It would become a class A felony if by fleeing they cause another person’s death.

      The bill also adjusts the circumstances for when resisting or interfering with arrest is a class A misdemeanor and when it is a class E felony.  If such an act is committed with the use of a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument, or involves taking someone hostage, it would be a class A felony.

      The House voted 107-25 on Wednesday to send HBs 1692 & 1748 to the Senate, where versions of Valentine’s Law have been advanced out of a committee and a bill that includes it has been passed and sent to the House.