[[{“value”:”Florida Gov. The harassment of police officers, correctional officers, and first responders on duty is a crime, according to Ron DeSantis ‘ signature legislation.
Senate Bill 184 would make it illegal for anyone to harass a police officer, custodial probation officer, firefighter, or an emergency health care provider who is now prohibited from approaching the first responder, according to Fox News.
” It’s great that law enforcement can serve our communities without fear of harassment from anti-police activists,” I said today. According to DeSantis,” we will continue to take steps to make sure Florida continues to be the friendliest state in the country for law enforcement officers.”
I am happy to have signed legislation today to allow law enforcement to serve our communities without fear of harassment from anti-police activists.
We will continue to take steps to make sure law enforcement in Florida continues to be friendly… pic. twitter.com/53SEH1II6K
— Ron DeSantis ( @GovRonDeSantis ) April 12, 2024
After receiving a linguistic warning, people are prohibited from being within 25 feet of a working officer or second responder in the bill’s section.
Per Fox News:
In the bill, harassment is defined as voluntarily engaged in “in a course of conduct directed at a first responder that purposefully causes considerable emotional distress in that first responder”
Additionally, the law prohibits people from moving 25 feet from a working primary responder’s door after receiving a verbal warning to stay ahead if they are threatening bodily harm or obstructing their job.
Sheriff Mike Chitwood of Volusia County said on Thursday that he supports the bill because more and more people are attempting to intimidate and threaten officers, according to him.
” If there’s a car stop, and you want to stand it across the street and film it, man, have at it. But you do n’t come up over the deputy’s shoulder or on a car stop, refuse to comply, and try to bait that deputy into doing something”, Chitwood said, according to FOX 35 Orlando.
Chitwood added that he wo n’t discipline his deputies for calling a disruptive person a name if it fits their behavior, even though he asks that they act professionally.
The bill’s critics claim it will make it more difficult to film and record instances of police brutality.
According to Action News Jax, Florida State Representative Angie Nixon ( D- Jacksonville ) argued the bill is ambiguous.
Action News Jax reports:
The second law ( SB 184 ), makes it a crime to harass first responders and authorizes police, fire, and EMS officials to declare a 25- foot ‘ no- go zone’ while they carry out their standard duties.
Ignoring the warning and coming too close with the intent to “impede, harass, or threaten” a first responder could result in 60 days in jail and a$ 500 fine.
When you’re at a traffic stop, you respond to a call from a distressed person, and therefore people try to interdict or harass you, DeSantis said.
But State Representative Angie Nixon ( D- Jacksonville ) argued the bill is ambiguous.
Nixon argued that it would be riskier to observe and document police interactions if language was removed from the legislative session that had expressly protected the public’s straight to film.
James Madison Audits, a former law enforcement officer turned 1st and 2nd Amendment media creator, had this response to the legislation:
WATCH:
What do you think?”}]] [[{“value”:”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed legislation criminalizing harassment of police officers and other first responders.
Fox News reported that “Senate Bill 184” would make it illegal to harass a policeman, firefighter, probation officer or emergency medical care provider who is ‘engaged lawfully in the performance of a legal obligation’ after receiving a warning to not approach the first responder.
“I am proud to have signed legislation today that will allow law enforcement officers to serve our communities without fear of harassment by anti-police activists.” DeSantis said that he would continue to take steps to ensure Florida remains one of the friendliest states in the country for law enforcement officers.
Today, I signed a bill that will allow law enforcement officers to serve their communities without fear of harassment by anti-police activists.
We will continue to take action to ensure Florida remains the friendliest state in the nation for law enforcement… pic.twitter.com/53SEH1II6K
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) April 12, 2024
The bill includes a section that states people are not allowed to be within 25 feet after verbal warnings of an officer or first responder.
Fox News:
In the bill, harassing conduct is defined as “willfully engaging in a course or conduct directed at a First Responder that intentionally causes substantial emotional distress to this first responder while serving no legitimate purpose.”
The bill also states that people are not allowed to be within 25 feet after receiving a verbal notice to stay away from a first responder if they are interfering or impeding with their job duties or threatening bodily harm.
Volusia Sheriff Mike Chitwood stated on Thursday that he supports this bill, as law enforcement agencies have seen more “aggressive and dangerous behavior” by people who are hoping to get a response from officers.
“Man, if there’s a traffic stop and you want to film it from across the street, go for it.” You don’t go up over a deputy’s shoulders or on a vehicle stop, refuse compliance, and try to lure that deputy into something,” Chitwood told FOX 35 Orlando.
Chitwood said that while he expects his deputies to act professionally, he won’t discipline them if they call a disruptive person by a name when it is appropriate.
Critics of the bill claim that it will make it more difficult to film and document instances of police brutality.
According to Action News Jax Florida State Representative Angie Nixon’s (D-Jacksonville), the bill is ambiguous.
Action News Jax:
The first law (SB 184) makes it illegal to harass first responders. It also authorizes police, firefighters, and EMS officials, to declare a ‘no go zone’ of 25 feet while they are performing their official duties.
Ignoring this warning and coming too near with the intent to “impede or harass” a first responder can result in a fine of $500 and 60 days in prison.
“You shouldn’t find yourself in a situation in which you are at a traffic check, responding to the distress call of a person and then people try to interdict you or harass you,” said DeSantis.
Angie Nixon, a state representative from Jacksonville (D), argued that the bill was ambiguous.
Nixon argued that the removal of language from the legislative session which explicitly protected the right of the public to film would make it more risky to observe and document police interaction.
James Madison Audits, former law enforcement officer and creator of media for the 1st Amendment and 2nd Amendment, responded to the legislation as follows:
WATCH:
What do you think about?
“}]]
