We’ve all seen the endless amount of videos over the past several years of “peaceful protesters” getting up in the face of police officers, in an attempt to rattle them into using force.
It is always painful to watch these officers sit there for hours at a time, remaining stoic in the face of abrasive protesters.
While everyone is entitled to their right to freedom of speech, there comes a point where these taunts, insults, and threats come into direct conflict with an officer’s ability to do their job.
In Kentucky, the state’s Senate has passed a bill that makes it a crime to taunt a police officer.
The bill states that 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 charged with a misdemeanor, fined, and face up to 90 days in jail.
CBS News has the scoop:
It could become a crime to taunt a police officer in Kentucky, under a bill that passed the state Senate on Thursday. The measure was filed months after Louisville, the state's largest city, became the site of huge protests in the wake of the police killing of Breonna Taylor.
The bill passed the Republican-dominated Senate 22-11 and now awaits House input.
Under the legislation, anyone 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 face up to 90 days in jail and fines.
The proposal also increases penalties for rioting. For instance, those charged with rioting would be required to be held for a minimum of 48 hours. Another provision would criminalize aiming "a light, a laser pointer, an activated horn or other noise-making device towards the head" of a first responder.
The bill is certainly controversial, and many believe it goes hard against the Second Amendment.
However, advocates of the bill point to the fact the many of the violent protesters over the past few years have utilized the tactic of baiting law enforcement officials into violence by taunting and obstructing them from doing their jobs, and then hving cameras at the ready to catch it all on film.
Protesters love to taunt police and then scream like victims when they are held accountable for their actions.
Fox 8 has more on the controversial bill, and reaction from the Kentucky ACLU:
The bill also calls out the “defund the police” movement, stating that law enforcement agencies need to “maintain and improve their respective financial support.”
On Thursday, after the bill was passed in the Senate, the ACLU of Kentucky took to Twitter saying “SB 211 is an extreme bill to stifle dissent.” The organization adds that it is also extreme to “make it a crime to say ‘insulting’ or ‘offensive’ things to law enforcement.”
Still, others simply say that nobody should taunt the police, especially during moments of increased civil unrest.
It's difficult for officers to protect anyone if others are purposely obstructing them.
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