On Thursday, the Kentucky Senate voted to pass a bill that would create stricter laws against forms of protesting and rioting, including the criminalization of taunting police officers following last year’s protests in Louisville.
According to The Associated Press, under the new bill, anybody who “accosts, insults, taunts, or challenges a law enforcement officer with offensive or derisive words, or by gestures or other physical contact, that would have a direct tendency to provoke a violent response” would be guilty of a misdemeanor and potentially be fined and have to serve up to 90 days in prison.
The measure also adds increased punishments for rioters. If someone is charged with rioting, they will “be required to be held for a minimum of 48 hours.” Another stipulation would reportedly make it illegal to point “a light, a laser pointer, an activated horn or other noise-making device towards the head” of a first responder.
State Sen. Danny Carroll is a Republican who sponsored the bill. He said that the reason he submitted the measure was in response to the protesting in Louisville last year. As reported by Kentucky’s Lane Report, Carroll said the bill “comes in response to the riots that occurred across our country during this past summer including in our own flagship city of Louisville… These are riots that led to billions of dollars of damage, injury and loss of life. The goal of Senate Bill 211 is to help protect our communities, protect our first-responders and protect public and private property.”
The legislation comes in the wake of massive protests in Louisville, Kentucky, last year after the death of Breonna Taylor sparked outrage. Last September, The Daily Wire reported on the protesting following Taylor’s death:
Protests over the death of Breonna Taylor, a black woman, in March erupted in Louisville on Wednesday after charges were announced in the case. Police officers killed Taylor during a raid on her apartment after Taylor’s boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, fired at the officers who had just broken down the front door, hitting one in the leg. The officers returned fire and Taylor was hit eight times.
Grand jury charges were announced against one former officer involved in the raid on Taylor’s apartment. Former police officer Brett Hankison was charged with three counts of first-degree wanton endangerment for allegedly firing off 10 shots “wildly” into the apartment after shooting broke out. Two other officers who fired shots were not charged over the incident, and no charges were brought relating to Taylor’s death.
The Republicans in Kentucky control the Senate, and the new bill passed with a 22-11 vote. Now, it goes to the House where some changes may be made.
Some Republican senators who were not in favor of the bill stated that they had concerns over how it might impede First Amendment rights or overwork the court system. However, they reportedly indicated that they could support the measure if some of the sections were changed when it goes to the House.
Some Democratic legislators felt that the bill might be abused in a manner that would unjustly target peaceful protesters. State Sen. Gerald Neal, a Democrat who represents Louisville, called the bill “unnecessary” and “unreasonable.”
“This is a hammer on my district,” Neil said. “I personally resent it. This is beneath this body.”
While some of the gatherings in Louisville last year were peaceful, several turned violent. Downtown Louisville’s Jefferson Square Park was called “Injustice Square” as it became a frequented area for those speaking out against racial injustice.