The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals judges questioned the state over the new anti-riot law. The Dream Defenders, the Florida State Conference of the NAACP and other organizations sued to prevent Governor Ron DeSantis and three sheriffs from enforcing the law, arguing that it had a chilling effect on First Amendment rights. A district court judge ruled last year that the law was unconstitutionally vague and overbroad. Governor DeSantis and the Jacksonville sheriff appealed to the 11th Circuit.
As Dara Kam of New Service of Florida reports, judges questioned the ambiguities of the law, specifically whether someone could violate the law for participating in a peaceful protest at which a small group of protestors start acting violently. In addition, judges questioned how the law is different from the common law definition of riot.
Attorneys for the organizations challenging the law argued that the law has “absolutely chilled the exercise” of speech.