JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – People who protest in front of private homes in Florida can face jail time and fines under a new bill signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday.
The governor said the bill would prevent protests in Florida like “those waged by abortion rights protesters in front of U.S. Supreme Court justices’ homes in Virginia.”
Beginning Oct. 1, protesting in front of private residences will become a second-degree misdemeanor in Florida.
Under this bill, this style of protesting will classify as “intentionally harassing or disturbing someone in their home.”
The new bill is receiving pushback from opposing sides saying it violates free speech.
Attorney Edward Birk, who specializes in First Amendment law, said that may not be true.
“Yes, it can be legal under the constitution. Each of us is entitled to be left alone in our homes and not subject to offensive speech or speech that we might find offensive,” Birk said.
Violators can face 60 days in jail and fines of up to $500.
Protesters can only be arrested after ignoring law enforcement’s orders to disperse.
Even protesting on a public sidewalk outside a private residence may fall into this category.
“The idea here is that (if) somebody’s protesting on a sidewalk, downtown somewhere, if a passerby finds that speech to be offensive, they can just keep walking and not pay attention to it. But here, the person who the speech is directed to -- the resident of a home -- is more or less captive and shouldn’t have to flee their home to avoid offensive speech,” Birk said.
In an email to news agencies, DeSantis referred to abortion rights demonstrators who protested outside of Supreme Court justices’ homes in Virginia as an “unruly mob.”
“Sending unruly mobs to private residences, like we have seen with the angry crowds in front of the homes of Supreme Court justices, is inappropriate. This bill will provide protection to those living in residential communities and I am glad to sign it into law,” DeSantis said.
News4JAX reached out to Women’s March Jacksonville, an abortion rights organization about their take on the bill.
“Where do you draw that line? If this is a fundamental American right and we start to strip away pieces of it…that’s a very slippery slope,” said Dana Holland, Vice President of Women’s March Jacksonville.
We’ve also reached out to Jacksonville For Life an anti-abortion organization. The group did not respond.
Birk said he expects lawsuits to challenge the bill. He said the two ways it will be challenged will be based on how the statute is written and how it is applied and enforced.