MIAMI.- Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed Senate Bill 184, which prohibits harassment of a police officer “when they are actively doing their job,” and another bill that prohibits civilian oversight boards from investigating police officers. local officials.
The signing ceremony for the new regulations was held at the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office in St. Augustine this Friday, April 12.
SB-184 makes it a misdemeanor to approach a police officer within 25 feet after receiving a warning from the officer not to harass or obstruct his or her duties.
“You should not be in a situation where you are responding to a call from someone in distress and have another person come and try to intercept you or harass you,” DeSantis said, adding: “Whoever does that knows that we see it as a problem and “He will have to be held accountable,” he said.
The governor also signed Senate Bill 601 which “will prohibit civilian review boards from investigating local authorities.” Under the bill, sheriffs will have the authority to establish “civilian oversight” boards charged with overseeing the policies and procedures of law enforcement agencies. Each board will be made up of three to seven members appointed by the sheriff, including at least one retired deputy.
This signing of this law may raise some controversy since the work of these independent civil boards is to carry out independent investigations and public hearings on complaints filed against officers, as the Miami-Dade Independent Civil Panel, created in 2020, states on its page. , after the Black Lives Matter protests.
“These bills will continue to demonstrate that we are a law and order state and we protect our officers,” DeSantis said.
The governor during the ceremony also addressed the issue of K-9s, retired police dogs who have dedicated their lives to serving the public.
The problem when adopting these retired dogs was that at that stage of their life they require more veterinary care. That is why, years ago, Florida legislators passed a law so that retired pets receive veterinary care at no cost, DeSantis reflected and confirmed that in 2022, 86 retired police dogs received veterinary care at no cost to their owners.
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