Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis offered a simple message to Sunshine State visitors on Tuesday as spring break approaches: Welcome to Florida. Now behave.
The Republican governor reiterated his law-and-order message by announcing that he was beefing up the presence of the Florida Highway Patrol and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement in popular spring break destinations such as Miami Beach, Daytona Beach, and Panama City Beach.
“Today is another example of the fact that we are — despite what the federal government may do, other states may do, and other localities may do — we’re a law-and-order state,” said DeSantis during a press conference as he was flanked by FDLE agents and uniformed state troopers.
Related: Florida State Troopers To Help During Spring Break
“Florida is a very welcoming state. We welcome people to come and have a good time,” he continued. “What we don’t welcome is criminal activity. What we don’t welcome is mayhem and people that wanna wreak havoc on our communities.”
“Make no mistake about it: If you’re coming here to enjoy Florida and have a good time, fine. If you’re coming for these other reasons — if you’re committing crimes and causing havoc, you are gonna pay the price. And we will hold you accountable. Because that’s what we do here.”
“I know some people may be coming from other jurisdictions where they can get away with this type of activity. That’s not gonna fly in the Sunshine State,” DeSantis added.
In a press release, DeSantis’ office noted that FHP issued a memo to law enforcement agencies across the state to offer assistance with increased enforcement presence.
Read: Louisiana Becomes The 28th State With ‘Constitutional Carry’ Law
To date, 17 local law enforcement agencies have requested that a total of 140 state troopers be deployed to their jurisdictions to help during spring break.
FHP will also activate 24 Quick Response Troopers in Bay, Volusia, Broward, and Dade counties for immediate response to incidents that require extra law enforcement personnel.
In Miami Beach specifically, the heightened enforcement activities 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.
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