MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – Gov. Ron DeSantis was joined by Florida Department of Law Enforcement Commissioner Mark Glass, Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Executive Director Dave Kerner and dozens of members of law enforcement Tuesday morning in Miami Beach.
DeSantis addressed traffic mitigation, crowd control and increased security for residential areas in spring break communities, like Miami Beach.
This includes 140 additional state troopers in 17 spring break cities, 24 quick response troopers and extra aviation, drones and license plate readers. The governor mentioned cities like Daytona Beach and Panama City Beach as being hot spots along with Miami Beach.
In Miami Beach, enforcement mechanisms will include:
- Curfews, security searches, bag checks, and early beach closures.
- Uniformed officers patrolling in vehicles, ATVs, bicycles, and on foot.
- Barricades, DUI checkpoints, and parking and lane closures.
“We want to see people have fun, but we are going to insist that people respect the law, that order is kept in the streets and that our residents and businesses are not negatively impacted by people here visiting,” DeSantis said.
This comes on the heels of several spring breaks in South Beach where shootings and other crimes have been happening during the festivities. Miami Beach Mayor, Steven Meiner, talked about the increase in policing and even how some have referenced how ‘Miami Beach is breaking up with spring break.’
Meiner has said crowds have become unmanageable despite a robust police presence. He said the city, which is situated on a barrier island across the bay from Miami, can only hold so many people, and that capacity has often exceeded what’s safe for both visitors and residents during the break.
Watch the entire news conference below