The new law increases penalties for assault, destruction, burglary, and theft, and battery against a law enforcement officer during a riot, and also prohibits the damaging or disarming of memorials or historic properties.
DeSantis, a Republican, praised the law at a news conference Monday as “the strongest, anti-riot, pro-law enforcement law in the country.”
“We are also ending the harassment and intimidation tactics of the radical left by criminalizing doxing and by demanding restitution by rioters for damaging memorials and monuments,” he added.
While Florida Republicans have insisted that the legislation is about improving security and preventing violence, Democrats argue that peaceful protesters can be falsely detained and that the law targets minority communities.
Entitled “Combat Public Disorder Act,” the law creates two new crimes: “mob intimidation” and damnation of an individual, or electronically publishing someone’s personal information with the intent that that person would be threatened or harassed.
The law also requires that a person arrested for such crimes committed during a riot be held in custody until their first appearance in court – preventing them from immediately paying bail. It creates a minimum of six months’ imprisonment for a person convicted of battery in a riot against a law enforcement officer.
There is also a provision to create an affirmative defense for a suspect in a civil suit who claims he was defending himself or his property against an insurrectionist; Democrats have previously expressed concern as to whether this would encourage vigilance.
The verdict in one of the most watched police brutality trials in decades could come this week as the Minneapolis metropolitan area and other cities are the result of police deaths, including the fatal shooting of 20-year-old Daunte Wright by an officer in Brooklyn. Center – just miles from the courthouse.
But Democratic lawmakers in Florida made it clear earlier Monday that they see the state’s new law as a step in the wrong direction.
“Today’s actions by Governor DeSantis show that he is not concerned about the lives of black and brown people, who just happen to be citizens of this diverse state we call home,” Senator Shevrin Jones said at a news conference.
“If he was concerned, he would have talked about police officers killing black men.”
That message was echoed by Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Nikki Fried, who charged that the law “made it more dangerous for the people here in our state who want to stand up against injustice and make changes in society.”
State Representative Bobby Dubose stated, “As a father trying to raise four young black men in this state, HB1 scares me”,
“We know from a lifetime of experience who will harm this – communities of color,” Dubose added.
Hillsborough state attorney Andrew Warren overturned the legislation in a statement because he “left just enough room to abuse the law and make it a crime to just be present at a demonstration where other people are doing something wrong.”
The law, Warren said, “won’t change what we do in Hillsborough County,” including Tampa.
“We will continue to aggressively prosecute those who cause violence and destruction and defend First Amendment rights aggressively.”
CNN’s Veronica Stracqualursi, Pamela Kirkland, Ray Sanchez, Kay Jones and Eric Fiegel contributed to this report.