Two women were arrested after the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said they violated Florida’s new “Halo Law.”
That law establishes a 25-foot buffer zone, within which it is illegal to harass, threaten or impede officers or first responders while performing their official duties.
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The incident began when an officer confronted Erika McGriff, 39, outside IDEA Bassett Charter School on Tuesday after she allegedly left her car parked and running at an intersection.
But the situation quickly escalated into a fight after police said McGriff began punching the officer.
She was eventually arrested and charged with striking a police officer, resisting arrest with violence, and driving with a suspended license.
“If you violently resist our officers, if you hit them, if you bite them, you will be arrested,” Jacksonville Sheriff TK Waters said during a news conference Friday.
But McGriff’s arrest was not the focus of Friday’s briefing.
Instead, Waters focused on the arrests of Anita Gibson, 59, and Jasmine Jefferson, 36.
During McGriff’s arrest, a crowd formed and, according to JSO, Gibson and Jefferson violated the “Halo Law” amid the chaos.
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“I don’t care if people are more than 25 feet away recording videos or saying what you’re going to say, because people are going to do that and you have the right to say what you want to say,” Waters said. “But if there comes a point where it creates an uncomfortable level for our police officer, who may or may not be hurt by someone in the crowd, then we have to draw the line.”
Waters said the ordeal affected more than just the officer and those arrested.
He announced that a teenage student was also arrested Friday after threatening to shoot up the school as a result of the incident.
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“These adults modeled and normalized school children by not only breaking the law, but lying to the police, violently resisting the police, hitting police officers, biting and harassing the police officer, and taxing a police officer. Officer Holten was simply doing his job,” Waters said.
Waters noted that while other people were also within 25 feet of the officer during McGriff’s arrest, they were not arrested because they were not acting in a harassing manner.
A person who captured video of the arrest on his cellphone was also not charged.
You can watch the Sheriff’s full press conference below:
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