---
title: SB 32. Obstruction of Public Administration; convicted of doing violence in the obstruction or hindering of law enforcement officers; provide for a mandatory minimum sentence
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/sb32
cite_as: SB 32, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb32
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb32.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb32/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69546
date: 2025-01-28
status: introduced
corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13
license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md
publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md
previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb31.md
next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb33.md
index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md
omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 95
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb32.md?full=1
bill_number: SB 32
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: Senate
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2025-01-27
last_action: Senate Read and Referred
sponsors:
  - Ricky Williams
  - Randy Robertson
  - John Albers
  - Timothy Bearden
  - Greg Dolezal
  - Steve Gooch
  - Billy Hickman
  - Chuck Payne
  - Kay Kirkpatrick
  - Matt Brass
  - Mike Hodges
  - Max Burns
  - Marty Harbin
  - Frank Ginn
  - Shawn Still
  - Clint Dixon
  - Bill Cowsert
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SB32/2025
upstream_id: 1943243
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
  - law enforcement
  - criminal sentencing
  - mandatory minimums
  - obstruction of officers
  - public safety
---

# SB 32. Obstruction of Public Administration; convicted of doing violence in the obstruction or hindering of law enforcement officers; provide for a mandatory minimum sentence

## Text

Senate Bill 32
By: Senators Williams of the 25th, Robertson of the 29th, Albers of the 56th, Bearden of the
30th, Dolezal of the 27th and others
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Article 2 of Chapter 10 of Title 16 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to obstruction of public administration and related offenses, so as to provide for a
mandatory minimum sentence for those convicted of doing violence in the obstruction or
hindering of law enforcement officers; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting
laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Article 2 of Chapter 10 of Title 16 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
obstruction of public administration and related offenses, is amended by revising Code
Section 16-10-24, relating to obstructing or hindering law enforcement officers, as follows:
"16-10-24.
(a) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (b) of this Code section, a person who
knowingly and willfully obstructs or hinders any law enforcement officer, prison guard,
jailer, correctional officer, community supervision officer, county or Department of
Juvenile Justice juvenile probation officer, probation officer serving pursuant to Article 6
of Chapter 8 of Title 42, or game warden in the lawful discharge of his or her official duties
shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
(b)(1) Whoever knowingly and willfully resists, obstructs, or opposes any law
enforcement officer, prison guard, jailer, correctional officer, community supervision
officer, county or Department of Juvenile Justice juvenile probation officer, probation
officer serving pursuant to Article 6 of Chapter 8 of Title 42, or game warden in the
lawful discharge of his or her official duties by offering <del>or doing</del> violence to the person
of such officer or legally authorized person shall be guilty of a felony and shall, upon a
first conviction thereof, be punished by imprisonment for not less than one year nor more
than five years. Upon a second conviction for a violation of this subsection, such person
shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than two years nor more than ten years.
Upon a third or subsequent conviction for a violation of this subsection, such person shall
be punished by imprisonment for not less than three years nor more than 15 years.
<ins>(2) Whoever knowingly and willfully resists, obstructs, or opposes any law enforcement
officer, prison guard, jailer, correctional officer, community supervision officer, county
or Department of Juvenile Justice juvenile probation officer, probation officer serving
pursuant to Article 6 of Chapter 8 of Title 42, or game warden in the lawful discharge of
his or her official duties by doing violence to the person of such officer or legally
authorized person shall be guilty of a felony and shall, upon conviction thereof, be
punished by imprisonment for not less than ten years nor more than 20 years.
</ins> (c) Whoever knowingly and willfully resists, obstructs, or opposes any law enforcement
officer, prison guard, jailer, correctional officer, community supervision officer, county or
Department of Juvenile Justice juvenile probation officer, probation officer serving
pursuant to Article 6 of Chapter 8 of Title 42, or game warden in the lawful discharge of
his or her official duties by knowingly and willfully throwing, projecting, or expelling
human or animal blood, urine, feces, vomitus, or seminal fluid on or at such individual
shall be guilty of a felony and shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished by imprisonment
for not less than one year nor more than five years.
(d) A person convicted under this Code section shall be punished, in addition to any term
of imprisonment imposed, by a fine as provided by law which shall be at least $300.00.
With respect to $300.00 of the fine imposed, after distributing the surcharges and
deductions required by Chapter 21 of Title 15, Code Sections 36-15-9 and 42-8-34, and
Title 47, it shall be earmarked for the Georgia State Indemnification Fund for purposes of
payment of indemnification for death or disability as provided for in Part 1 of Article 5 of
Chapter 9 of Title 45."
SECTION 2.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.

## Summaries written by Georgia Commons

The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary.

Senate Bill 32 would split Georgia's law on obstructing law enforcement officers so that actually doing violence to an officer, not just offering violence, carries its own separate felony with a mandatory 10 to 20 year prison sentence.

### Plain-language summary

Current Georgia law (O.C.G.A. § 16-10-24) punishes anyone who resists or obstructs a law enforcement officer, prison guard, jailer, correctional officer, probation officer, or game warden by 'offering or doing violence' to that officer, with penalties that rise from 1 to 5 years on a first offense up to 3 to 15 years on a third or later offense.
Senate Bill 32 removes 'or doing' from that offering-violence provision and creates a new, separate subsection specifically for someone who does violence to the officer. That new offense is a felony punishable by 10 to 20 years in prison upon conviction, with no distinction for first, second, or subsequent offenses. The bill leaves untouched the existing penalties for throwing bodily fluids at an officer and the mandatory $300 fine, part of which is earmarked for the Georgia State Indemnification Fund. If passed, the change would repeal any conflicting laws and take effect once signed.

### What it does

- Removes the phrase 'or doing' from the existing offering-violence offense in O.C.G.A. § 16-10-24(b)(1), leaving it to cover only offering violence to an officer.
- Creates a new subsection (b)(2) making it a distinct felony to actually do violence to a law enforcement officer, prison guard, jailer, correctional officer, probation officer, or game warden during their official duties.
- Sets a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum of 20 years for anyone convicted under the new doing-violence provision, regardless of whether it is a first offense.
- Leaves unchanged the tiered penalties (1 to 5, 2 to 10, and 3 to 15 years) that still apply to offering violence without actually committing it.
- Leaves unchanged the separate felony and penalty for throwing bodily fluids at an officer and the mandatory $300 fine tied to the Georgia State Indemnification Fund.

### Who it affects

People charged with resisting or obstructing law enforcement officers, prison guards, jailers, correctional officers, probation officers, or game wardens through physical violence would face this new law. It also affects prosecutors, judges, and the corrections system, since it changes sentencing options and removes judicial discretion to impose less than 10 years for this specific offense.

### Why it matters

Anyone convicted of actually doing violence to a covered officer would face a mandatory decade in prison at minimum, even on a first offense, a sharp increase from the current 1 to 5 year range. This shifts significant sentencing power from judges to a fixed statutory floor for this category of crime.

### Key provisions

- Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 16-10-24(b)(1) to remove 'or doing' violence, narrowing that subsection to cover only offering violence to an officer.
- Section 1 adds new subsection (b)(2), making doing violence to a covered officer its own felony with a mandatory minimum of 10 years and maximum of 20 years in prison.
- Existing subsection (c), covering throwing bodily fluids at an officer, and subsection (d), setting the $300 mandatory fine earmarked partly for the Georgia State Indemnification Fund, remain unchanged.
- Section 2 repeals any laws or parts of laws that conflict with the Act.

## Status

- Status: Introduced (2025-01-27)
- Last action: Senate Read and Referred (2025-01-28)
- Sponsors: Ricky Williams, Randy Robertson, John Albers, Timothy Bearden, Greg Dolezal, Steve Gooch, Billy Hickman, Chuck Payne, Kay Kirkpatrick, Matt Brass, Mike Hodges, Max Burns, Marty Harbin, Frank Ginn, Shawn Still, Clint Dixon, Bill Cowsert
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69546

> The history, votes, and amendments (95 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb32.md?full=1