NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A new bill introduced by Tennessee legislators would make blocking highways and other public throughways a felony while also giving drivers who unintentionally hit people immunity.
HB0513 also says it would create new penalties for "riot-related" offenses, including making it a class E felony to throw something at someone and hurt them during a riot.
If a driver unintentionally hits a person said to be blocking a highway or street, they would be granted immunity even if the person hit was injured or killed as a result.
According to WVLT, a class E felony in Tennessee is punishable by up to six years in prison. The bill would also impose a mandatory $3,000 fine, it reported.
WJHL reports the state House Criminal Justice Committee recommended the passage of the bill Wednesday.
Here in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis has been vocal about his intent to push for harsher penalties for rioters and people who participate in disorderly assemblies in Florida in the state legislature.
"If you riot, you are going to jail," Florida Gov. DeSantis warned back in January a week after the deadly U.S. Capitol riot.
The governor said legislation he introduced back in September 2020 regarding more severe penalties for people who are arrested during "violent, disorderly" assemblies "is going to pass" during this year's legislative session.
"I don't care why you're doing it, you're not doing it here," DeSantis said as a warning about disorderly assemblies.
He said if anything does happen in the state, he will have the proper reinforcements in place to handle potential events.
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