Uploaded December 2018 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
Did you know that it's legal to physically fight police officers in Oregon if you "reasonably believe" that the officer is using beyond the minimal force necessary to take someone, including yourself, into custody? The curious case of State v Oliphant established that, with the Oregon supreme court ruling that defendant Kenneth Wood had the right to defend himself against what he believed was unlawful physical force being used against him police officers.
This case also established that the premise of self defense lies solely on the defendant raising self defense, and that the intent or mindset of the person whom the defendant defended himself against is irrelevant. Self defense is in the mindset of the person charged with a crime and claiming self defense, and whether that person thought that their "assailant" was using or about to use unlawful force against them, whether or not that force was lawful or unlawful.
In my case, Judge Thomas Ryan ruled that my statements made to a detective while I was in custody after I was attacked on the streets while at work and I acted in self defense to prevent a mob of masked thugs from using further unlawful physical force were inadmissible. Judge Ryan refused to allow me to establish what my mindset was at the time of the altercation. This is one of the many appeals issues we have raised as the case continues to plod through the appeals process.
Also established in the Oliphant, Rilatos, and Wood case is what a police officer deems to be a "threat". Apparently one female shouting obscenities at an officer is enough of a threat that an officer calls for "code 3" backup, which means “an officer is in dire need of backup because of an injury or threat to the officer's life.“
Furthermore, a 6'3", 260 pound police officer can interpret a 5'10", 170 pound man to be an "ominous threat" based solely on the way the smaller man is walking.
But if you're a citizen attacked in the streets by a mob of masked while you're engaging in your 1st Amendment rights to free press, that's somehow NOT considered a threat according to the courts, otherwise Judge Thomas Ryan would have acquitted me of all charges.
State Supreme Court decision: law.justia.com/cases/oregon/supreme-court/2009/s056404.html
Petition submitted to the Supreme Court: scribd.com/document/395920296/State-v-Oliphant
Did you know that it's legal to physically fight police officers in Oregon if you "reasonably believe" that the officer is using beyond the minimal force necessary to take someone, including yourself, into custody? The curious case of State v Oliphant established that, with the Oregon supreme court ruling that defendant Kenneth Wood had the right to defend himself against what he believed was unlawful physical force being used against him police officers.
This case also established that the premise of self defense lies solely on the defendant raising self defense, and that the intent or mindset of the person whom the defendant defended himself against is irrelevant. Self defense is in the mindset of the person charged with a crime and claiming self defense, and whether that person thought that their "assailant" was using or about to use unlawful force against them, whether or not that force was lawful or unlawful.
In my case, Judge Thomas Ryan ruled that my statements made to a detective while I was in custody after I was attacked on the streets while at work and I acted in self defense to prevent a mob of masked thugs from using further unlawful physical force were inadmissible. Judge Ryan refused to allow me to establish what my mindset was at the time of the altercation. This is one of the many appeals issues we have raised as the case continues to plod through the appeals process.
Also established in the Oliphant, Rilatos, and Wood case is what a police officer deems to be a "threat". Apparently one female shouting obscenities at an officer is enough of a threat that an officer calls for "code 3" backup, which means “an officer is in dire need of backup because of an injury or threat to the officer's life.“
Furthermore, a 6'3", 260 pound police officer can interpret a 5'10", 170 pound man to be an "ominous threat" based solely on the way the smaller man is walking.
But if you're a citizen attacked in the streets by a mob of masked while you're engaging in your 1st Amendment rights to free press, that's somehow NOT considered a threat according to the courts, otherwise Judge Thomas Ryan would have acquitted me of all charges.
State Supreme Court decision: law.justia.com/cases/oregon/supreme-court/2009/s056404.html
Petition submitted to the Supreme Court: scribd.com/document/395920296/State-v-Oliphant
