Florida is a “law and order”, Second Amendment state. On the off chance that you mess around and bust into somebody’s home in the sunshine state, you could get a face full with buckshot for your trouble.
Obviously, criminals take every chance they can to do their bad deeds, and a generational hurricane is no different. Looters have been arrested in Florida in the aftermath of Ian. Recently, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis had a dire warning for would-be thieves.
“Don’t even think about looting.”
“They boarded up all the businesses, and there are people that wrote on their plywood, ‘you loot, we shoot,’” DeSantis said during a press conference near Fort Myers in southwest Florida. “At the end of the day, we are not going to allow lawlessness to take advantage of this situation. We are a law-and-order state, and this is a law-and-order community, so do not think that you’re going to go take advantage of people who’ve suffered misfortune.”
Florida is a law and order state.
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) October 1, 2022
Looting and lawlessness will not be tolerated. pic.twitter.com/8Ma9RuSlPq
It shouldn’t even have to be a warning. Any individual with a shred of decency in them would not exploit something as horrific as Ian, but criminals are not noted for their decency. Thieves have proactively been captured, and Sheriff Carmine Marceno of Lee Area, Florida is having none of it. Lee County is where Fort Myers Beach is located, and ground zero for damage.
“Sheriff Carmine Marceno means business and has taken a zero tolerance stance on looting. We are patrolling and you will be arrested if you partake in criminal activity,”
Marceno’s office has previously captured thieves and posted their photos on Lee Province’s Facebook page so anyone might see for themselves. The Lee Region Sheriff’s office is infamous for blasting lawbreakers via social media. That is not where you need to cross paths with the law.
DeSantis went on to later say:
“The other thing we’re concerned about, particularly in those areas that were really hard hit, is we want to make sure we’re maintaining law and order,” DeSantis said. “Don’t even think about looting. Don’t even think about taking advantage of people in this vulnerable situation.”
“I can tell you, in the state of Florida, you never know what may be lurking behind somebody’s home,” DeSantis said. “I would not want to chance that if I were you, given that we’re a Second Amendment state.”
Ron DeSantis shouldn’t have to give veiled warnings. People should be coming together for the greater good to help each other and lift each other up. No one alive has seen the kind of devastation Ian left in Southwest Florida. If that isn’t enough to make someone think twice before breaking into what’s left of a home or business, than perhaps Facebook posts and threats of violent retaliation are appropriate.
Fortunately the reports of looting have been few so far, and hopefully, people will respect the law and other people’s property. Sheriff Marceno and Ron DeSantis are having none of the lawlessness and have no problem letting the rest of the world know what kind of dirtbag you are if you are caught looting. Maybe thieves could be placed on the following transport to Chicago or New York City with unlawful foreigners where they would feel more at ease.
Florida will not tolerate looters taking advantage of #HurricaneIan to prey on vulnerable Floridians. They will be arrested and I have asked state attorneys to seek the longest pretrial detention possible to keep them locked up so they cannot commit new crimes. https://t.co/ORw0qJ1TbB
— AG Ashley Moody (@AGAshleyMoody) September 30, 2022
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody summed it up:
“Florida will not tolerate looters taking advantage of Hurricane Ian to prey on vulnerable Floridians,” Moody wrote on Twitter. “They will be arrested and I have asked state attorneys to seek the longest pretrial detention possible to keep them locked up so they cannot commit new crimes.”
Florida is tough on crime, and prospective looters are going to find out the hard way by landing on Lee County’s Facebook feed.
