Florida Senate - 2013                                     SB 118
       
       
       
       By Senator Benacquisto
       
       
       
       
       30-00168-13                                            2013118__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to funerals, burials, and memorial
    3         services; creating s. 871.015, F.S.; providing a
    4         definition; prohibiting picketing or engaging in other
    5         protest activities within a specified distance of the
    6         property line of the location of a funeral, burial, or
    7         memorial service for certain persons; providing
    8         criminal penalties; providing an effective date.
    9  
   10  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   11  
   12         Section 1. Section 871.015, Florida Statutes, is created to
   13  read:
   14         871.015 Unlawful protests.—
   15         (1) As used in this section, the term “other protest
   16  activities” means any action that is disruptive or that is
   17  undertaken to disrupt or disturb a funeral, burial, or memorial
   18  service.
   19         (2) A person may not knowingly picket or engage in other
   20  protest activities or knowingly cause picketing or other protest
   21  activities to occur within 500 feet of the property line of a
   22  residence, cemetery, funeral home, house of worship, or other
   23  location during or within 1 hour before or 1 hour after the
   24  conducting at such places of a funeral or burial of, or a
   25  memorial service for, a military service member, an emergency
   26  response worker, an elected official, or a minor.
   27         (3) A person who violates this section commits a
   28  misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided in s.
   29  775.082 or s. 775.083.
   30         Section 2. This act shall take effect October 1, 2013.