Connect with us

Florida

Is it legal to video police and other first responders in Florida? It may get tough in 2025

Published

on

Is it legal to video police and other first responders in Florida? It may get tough in 2025


play

As of 2025, it may become harder to take videos of law enforcement in Florida, even if they’re breaking the law themselves.

Advertisement

A new law going into effect on Jan. 1 requires people to move back 25 feet if first responders, including law enforcement, verbally warn them to, while the responder is performing a legal duty. 

Gov. Ron DeSantis said this was in support of law enforcement officers and accused news media outlets of warping narratives about police for attention and “clicks.” 

Critics say it’s to prevent people from taking videos of law enforcement officers breaking the law or brutalizing people.

Here’s what to know.

What does SB 184, Impeding, Threatening, or Harassing First Responders, do?

SB 184 makes it illegal, after you have been verbally warned, to approach a first responder or remain within 25 feet while the responder is performing a legal duty with the intent to:

Advertisement
  • Block or interfere with their ability to perform the duty
  • Threaten the first responders with physical harm
  • Harass the first responder

Violations will be a second-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to 60 days in jail.

What does SB 184 define as ‘harassment’?

“Harassment” is defined as an action directed at a first responder that “intentionally causes substantial emotional distress in that first responder and serves no legitimate purpose.”

“Emotional distress,” “legitimate purpose” and which parties may decide if they apply were left undefined.

Rep. Angela Nixon, D-Jacksonville, introduced an amendment to clarify that “harass” did not include “asking a first responder questions out of concern, for the health, safety and well-being, of the person that is being responded to” and to stress that a person may still impede a first responder if they are breaking the law or using “unnecessary harm or excessive force.” The amendment failed.

What does SB 184 define as ‘first responders’?

First responders are defined here as law enforcement officers, correctional probation officers, firefighters and emergency medical care providers.

Advertisement

Are you allowed to record or video police officers in Florida?

Yes. SB 184 does not prevent taking video or pictures of law enforcement in the course of their duties, but it does require you, if asked, to move 25 feet away, which can make shooting images or video much more difficult.

An amendment from Rep. LaVon Bracy Davis, D-Ocoee, which would have defined “the peaceful audio or video recording, photographing, or eyewitness observing of a first responder” as a legitimate purpose, failed to pass.

So did Nixon’s other proposed amendment to change the name of the bill to “The I Don’t Want the World to See the Police Kill an Unarmed Innocent Man Like George Floyd Again, So I Want To Protect Bad Cops and Violate Free Speech Act.”

How did police videos cause the Black Lives Matter protest movement to go worldwide?

Davis’ amendment referred to the video shot of George Floyd, a Black man killed by a police officer in 2020.

Advertisement

The video, and many others shot by bystanders and witnesses, were widely shared online and contributed to the massive widespread Black Lives Matter protests that year by making more Americans aware of incidents of police brutality that otherwise may have gone unnoticed. 

Darnella Frazier, the then-17-year-old girl who videoed Floyd’s murder, was awarded a Pulitzer Prize Special Citation.

Why was SB 184 necessary?

DeSantis said when he signed the bill that the legislation “recognizes we’ve got some strange currents going on in our society right now that really seek to delegitimize law enforcement,” accusing news media outlets of warping narratives about police for attention and “clicks” and citing media coverage of the controversial police killing of Dexter Reed in Chicago.

Officers fired 96 shots in 41 seconds at Reed during a traffic stop, reportedly over Reed not wearing a seatbelt. A citizen review board questioned both the validity of the stop and the order of events — they say it’s unclear who shot first — and questioned the appropriateness of deadly force in the response. Bodycam footage showed one officer emptying his pistol multiple times at Reed, even after Reed was motionless on the ground.

“You shouldn’t be in a situation where you’re at a traffic stop, you’re responding to a call of someone in distress, and then you have people come trying to interdict or trying to harass you from performing your duty,” DeSantis said. “We view that as a problem, and now you’re going to be held accountable.”

Advertisement

Critics questioned the bill, saying it would be open to First Amendment challenges and prevent recordings of police misconduct and brutality.



Source link

Florida

Rain chances linger this week in Central Florida

Published

on

Rain chances linger this week in Central Florida


If you need help with the Public File, call (407) 291-6000

At WKMG, we are committed to informing and delighting our audience. In our commitment to covering our communities with innovation and excellence, we incorporate Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies to enhance our news gathering, reporting, and presentation processes. Read our article to see how we are using Artificial Intelligence.



Source link

Continue Reading

Florida

Supreme Court tosses Florida lawsuit against states for driver’s licenses issued to undocumented immigrants

Published

on

Supreme Court tosses Florida lawsuit against states for driver’s licenses issued to undocumented immigrants


WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday threw out a long-shot lawsuit in which Florida sought to sue California and Washington for allegedly allowing people who entered the country illegally to obtain commercial truck driver’s licenses.

Florida’s claim was filed in the aftermath of a high-profile crash in the state last year in which a truck driven by an Indian man, Harjinder Singh, was involved in an accident that left three people dead. The state, which says Singh did not have legal status in the United States, alleges he was wrongly issued licenses in both California and Washington. Singh faces criminal charges over the incident.

The court denied the state’s appeal without comment.

Tune in to Here’s the Scoop’s special Supreme Court Edition, where Senior Legal Correspondent Laura Jarrett goes deep on major cases.

Conservative Justice Clarence Thomas wrote a separate opinion saying he would have heard the case. He was joined by fellow conservative Justice Samuel Alito.

“This court declines to even hear Florida’s claims, even though it has nowhere else to bring them,” Thomas wrote.

Advertisement

The unusual case saw Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, a Republican, file a claim directly at the Supreme Court instead of a lower state or federal court. The court can sometimes intervene in such disputes between states, but it rarely does so.

Harjinder Singh
Harjinder Singh is arraigned in Stockton, Calif., on Aug. 19.Clifford Oto / The Stockton Record via AP file

The lawsuit alleged that the Democratic-led states’ “open defiance” of federal immigration laws has led them to flout federal safety regulations. This has resulted in drivers obtaining licenses without “proper training or the ability to read road signs.” Those drivers cross state lines and are therefore threatening the safety of people in Florida and other states, the lawsuit says. Iowa and 16 other states filed a brief backing Florida.

Lawyers for California and Washington argued in response that there was no basis for the Supreme Court to take up the issue.

Washington Attorney General Nicholas Brown wrote in his brief that the lawsuit was a “political stunt, not a real claim,” noting that Uthmeier announced he was filing it during an appearance on conservative Fox News host Sean Hannity’s show.

Uthmeier, who is currently running for a full term after being appointed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis last year, has frequently leaned in on divisive conservative causes.

The Florida crash sparked a new political fight over illegal immigration as the Trump administration implements a hard-line immigration policy. In the aftermath of the incident, the administration threatened to cut off federal funds from California, Washington and New Mexico if they did not implement English language requirements for commercial drivers.

Advertisement



Source link

Continue Reading

Florida

Tiger Woods breaks silence on Memorial Day following DUI arrest in Florida

Published

on

Tiger Woods breaks silence on Memorial Day following DUI arrest in Florida


Famous golfer Tiger Woods broke his silence on Memorial Day following his DUI arrest in Jupiter.

On X, Woods — whose full name is Eldrick Tont Woods — shared a Memorial Day tribute to his father, writing, “My father was a Special Forces operator with two tours in Vietnam and 20 years of service. To all those like my father, we all say thank you for your sacrifices. Without them we wouldn’t have the greatest country on Earth.”

In March, Woods was arrested on suspicion of DUI following a two-vehicle rollover crash involving a pickup truck and his Land Rover.

See also: Midnight shooting outside Boca Raton restaurant leaves 2 hospitalized, suspect on the run

Advertisement

Following his arrest, Woods, 50, waived his arraignment and pleaded not guilty in the Martin County case. The plea came after a probable cause affidavit revealed deputies found two white pills in Woods’ pocket, identified by their imprint as hydrocodone during the DUI arrest. The case also includes a refusal to submit to a urine test under a recently strengthened Florida law.

The arrest led Martin County prosecutors to subpoena Woods’ prescription records and order him to appear in court in May. However, Woods did not appear at the Stuart courthouse, and his attorney, Doug Duncan, appeared on his behalf.

Duncan said during the court hearing, the defense is no longer opposing the subpoena, and both the state and defense agreed the records should only be made available to attorneys and law enforcement. As a result, the prescription records will not become public record and will not be available to the media.

Comment with Bubbles

BE THE FIRST TO COMMENT

Advertisement

The case against Woods remains ongoing.



Source link

Continue Reading
Advertisement

Trending