Originally Posted by ratbastid

You know, I can muster up some compassion for the position these cops were in. It's a tough job, being a police officer. You're given a badge and a gun, and told to go out and stop crime based entirely on your wits and your ability to apply force--both physical and psychological. It's no surprise that they sometimes end up employing tactics like this. Doesn't make it right, but I can understand it.

You absolutely CAN be charged with harboring/aiding a fugitive without having prior knowledge of the person's fugitive status. Your ignorance may become a mitigating factor in court (or the judge might dismiss outright), but that doesn't necessarily prevent your being hauled in for it.