Civil rights groups this week welcomed a federal district court opinion that found Florida’s “anti-riot law,” House Bill 1, violates the Constitution and chills the legitimate free-speech rights of protesters.
Judge Mark Walker of the Northern District of Florida effectively blocked Gov. Ron DeSantis and several Florida sheriffs from enforcing Section 15 of HB 1, which contains what Walker found was an overly broad definition of a riot.
“If this court does not enjoin the statute’s enforcement, the lawless actions of a few rogue individuals could effectively criminalize the protected speech of hundreds, if not thousands, of law-abiding Floridians,” Walker said in Thursday’s opinion. “This violates the First Amendment.”
The plaintiffs, including the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund Inc. and the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, filed their complaint about the new law in May. They described Walker’s ruling as a key victory for racial-justice advocates.
The state legislature passed HB 1 in the wake of numerous Black Lives Matter protests in the state last year.
“Today’s decision enjoining enforcement of a key provision of HB 1 will greatly contribute to the safety of Black organizers and others affected by this unjust law,” the plaintiffs said in a joint statement emailed to the Florida Record. “HB 1 effectively criminalizes our constitutional right to peacefully protest and puts anyone – particularly Black people demonstrating against police violence – at risk of unlawful arrest, injury and even death.”
The plaintiffs were especially concerned with a portion of the law that shields fearful members of the public from civil penalties if they injure or kill protesters under the new riot definition.
Walker backed the plaintiffs’ standing in the case, noting that the groups’ members had curtailed their lawful activities after HB 1 took effect.
“Plaintiffs’ evidence establishes, beyond mere conclusions, that their members have engaged in self-censoring for fear of the challenged statute’s enforcement against them,” he said. “... The chill is evidenced by the unwillingness of their members to turn out at protest events in the weeks following HB 1’s enactment. …”
Supporters of HB 1 have argued that the law does not prohibit peaceful protests but gives local law enforcement the tools to deal with protesters who engage in violence and destruction of property.