An obstruction blocks things, like a roadblock prevents drivers to enter a street or a piece of food cuts off your windpipe. All types of obstructions block things. If you put a shelf in your doorway, that would be an obstruction: people would have a hard time getting around it.
: the crime or act of willfully interfering with the process of justice and law especially by influencing, threatening, harming, or impeding a witness, potential witness, juror, or judicial or legal officer or by furnishing false information in or otherwise impeding an investigation or legal process.
(18 U.S.C. 1512(c), 1512(d)) Subsection 1512(c) proscribes obstruction of official proceedings by destruction of evidence and is punishable by imprisonment for not more than 20 years.
At its core, obstruction of justice, involves any act that interferes with the proper functioning of the legal system or the investigation of a crime. This interference can manifest in various forms, such as witness tampering, destruction of evidence, lying to investigators, or obstructing court proceedings.
Obstruction of justice broadly refers to actions by individuals that illegally prevent or influence the outcome of a government proceeding.
§ 14‑223. (b) If any person shall willfully and unlawfully resist, delay, or obstruct a public officer in discharging or attempting to discharge an official duty, and the resistance, delay, or obstruction is the proximate cause of a public officer's serious injury, the person is guilty of a Class I felony.
The Penalties for Obstruction of Justice A fine and/or up to six months in federal prison (18 U.S.C. § 1504.); A fine and/or up to eight years in federal prison (18 U.S.C. § 1505); A fine and/or up to twenty years in federal prison (18 U.S.C. § 1503).
Lack of Intent One of the most effective defense strategies is to argue that there was no intent to obstruct justice. Many obstruction laws require the prosecution to prove that the accused willfully intended to interfere with the duties of a law enforcement officer or other authority figure.