'Anti-riot' law backed by Florida Gov. DeSantis blocked by federal judge

TALLAHASSEE – A federal judge Thursday blocked enforcement of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' so-called anti-riot law, which opponents have said is riddled with constitutional defects.

Federal judge Mark Walker, the chief judge of the Northern District of Florida, agreed with arguments made by several civil rights organizations pushing to stop the law.

The Republican governor proposed the measure after weeks of protests by Black Lives Matter supporters last summer, including 79 demonstrations in Florida in the two months after George Floyd's death at the hands of Minneapolis police.

Saying he had seen enough, DeSantis signed the anti-riot bill into law at an April event in Polk County, flanked by uniformed law enforcement officers. He called it the “strongest anti-rioting, pro-law enforcement piece of legislation in the country.”

Civil rights organizations argued that the law is unconstitutional because its sweeping language could be used against people who are peacefully protesting.

The judge agreed, saying in his order that the law is a threat to the constitutional rights of Americans. Its "vagueness permits those in power to weaponize its enforcement against any group who wishes to express any message that the government disapproves of,” he wrote.

While some Floridians might approve of the law's "chilling effect" on protesters, Walker wrote, "depending on who is in power, next time it could be their ox being gored.”

The law toughened penalties for crimes that occur during protests that become violent and created new crimes including “mob intimidation,” “inciting a riot” and “defacing, damaging or destroying a monument,” largely aimed at protecting Confederate monuments across Florida that are occasional targets of protests.

A USA TODAY review found that Florida was at the beginning of a wave of bills proposed in state legislatures after millions of Americans hit the streets last year to protest police brutality and racial discrimination.

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Bills have aimed to ban "taunting police" and "camping" on state property. They would expand activities that are illegal during a riot and impose harsher penalties for blocking traffic.

DeSantis spokeswoman Taryn Fenske said, "We will immediately file an appeal, where we are confident that the 11th Circuit will correctly apply the law and uphold HB 1 to ensure Florida’s law enforcement agencies have the tools necessary to combat riots and keep Floridians safe."

Stops police cuts

The measure also attempted to thwart efforts to reduce city police budgets – giving state attorneys and elected officials who object to cuts the ability to appeal to Florida's Administration Commission, made up of the governor and his Cabinet.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, Dream Defenders, the Black Collective and the Florida State Conference of the NAACP are among the groups that filed a lawsuit seeking to overturn the law.

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This is the second time a major policy priority for DeSantis was stopped by a federal judge. This summer, Senior U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle halted DeSantis’ effort to crack down on social media companies, which the governor demanded after former President Donald Trump was de-platformed after the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

Facebook determined that Trump “created an environment where a serious risk of violence was possible.” The former president is still exiled from major social media sites.

But similar to Walker’s ruling, Hinkle said that the social media law undermined constitutional free speech protections for Twitter, Facebook and other platforms, which as private companies are authorized to adhere to standards for users.

Hinkle said that law went too far: “Like prior First Amendment restrictions, this is an instance of burning the house to roast a pig.”

The DeSantis administration has appealed the social media decision to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, where six Trump-appointed judges serve and a majority has been named by Republican presidents.

Critics said law gave cops leeway to arrest peaceful protesters

The law enforcement legislation, HB 1, was among the most contentious bills of the 2021 legislative session. It was approved by all Republicans but one – state Sen. Jeff Brandes of St. Petersburg – and opposed by all Democrats in the House and Senate.

Black Democrats, especially, warned that the tougher penalties included in the measure could be applied unequally. Many critics said they feared it gave too much authority to law enforcement officers to decide whether to arrest peaceful protesters at demonstrations where violence may have erupted.

That concern was shared by Walker in his order blocking the law.

In their lawsuit, civil rights organizations argued that the law “permits the arrest, detention and prosecution of protesters who are not engaged in criminal conduct, but rather who simply participate in certain protests.”

Following Walker's order, they said, "We are glad the court has agreed to suspend enforcement of this key provision while we continue to advocate to ensure that protesters in Florida can safely exercise their right to speak out against injustice."

USA TODAY National Correspondent Tami Abdollah contributed to this report. John Kennedy is a reporter in the USA TODAY Network’s Florida Capital Bureau. He can be reached at jkennedy2@gannett.com, or on Twitter at @JKennedyReport

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Federal judge blocks Florida 'anti-riot' law