Earlier this year the City of Miami Beach passed Ordinance 70-8 that makes it illegal to remain within 20 feet of a law enforcement officer after they tell you to leave. This ordinance has been exclusively used to arrest 13 young Black men and women who were legally recording the Miami Beach Police. On March 23, 2022 the city of Miami Beach declared a state of emergency, banning alcohol sales after 6pm and enacting a midnight curfew, all to arrest and deter Black tourists from enjoying an area that markets itself on being a party spot.

"On July 25th, [Name Redacted] stumbled upon a traffic stop at Sixth Street and Collins Avenue and decided to use her phone to record it from the sidewalk. An officer shouted at her, quickly hit her with his bicycle, and pepper-sprayed her, video shows. Records show she was arrested at 3:20 a.m., booked at 8:28 a.m., and released at 9:10 p.m," reported Local 10: Video shows another controversial arrest of New York tourist recording Miami Beach officers during Rolling Loud weekend. The article continued: "Other MBPD officers also used the new city law to justify the arrests of two other tourists from New York... who decided to pull out their phones to record officers shortly before 2 a.m., on July 26. Miami-Dade prosecutors used body cam video and surveillance video to file misdemeanor battery charges against three MBPD officers."

Now, Miami Beach has suspended enforcement of the ordinance (Miami Beach Police Ordered to Stop Enforcing Law Used to Charge Only Black Bystanders Filming Cops After Slew of Problematic Arrests) but it has not been removed from the books. In fact, we fully anticipate that the ordinance will be enforced again during Memorial Day weekend and other gatherings of Black people in South Beach.

We learned all too well in the murder of George Floyd how important it is for individuals to be free to record the police.

Florida Justice Center is leading the charge to have this ordinance declared unconstitutional in the courts and has represented some of those arrested under this law. But we need to rally together and urge the City Commission and the Florida House of Representatives to nullify the law and stop targeting Black men and women. Florida Justice Center was able to have all cases they represented dismissed, but the law remains on the books as prosecutors dropped the cases just as a judge was to hear constitutional challenges. They're running scared and we have to keep fighting for what's right.