Under New Anti-Riot Law, Miami Protestors Could Face 3rd-Degree Felony Charges

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MIAMI (CBSMiami) — People protesting astir conditions successful Cuba are being warned not to artifact streets, roadways, and highways.

They could beryllium fixed a $15 postulation citation if they obstruct postulation and nether the state’s caller anti-riot law, they adjacent could beryllium charged with a 3rd-degree felony and arrested if the protests crook convulsive oregon if determination is disorderly behaviour resulting successful injuries oregon spot damage.

The informing comes aft dozens of protestors stormed the Palmetto Expressway astir 1 p.m. connected Tuesday and postulation was unopen down for much than 8 hours astatine Coral Way, starring to a monolithic postulation jam.

The Florida Highway Patrol did not disperse the assemblage until astir 9:15 p.m. and that took astir 25 minutes. Everyone near peacefully. One protestor who was injured was taken distant by ambulance.

No protestors were cited oregon arrested.

At the Versailles edifice successful adjacent Little Havana, immoderate radical said they understood wherefore others took to the road and shared immoderate of their sentiments.

Standing successful beingness for java astatine the restaurant, Luis Rumbaut said, “I recognize that radical mightiness beryllium upset but it’s for the close cause.”

It’s a origin that salient Cuban exile and activistic Raul Masvidal has been warring for since leaving Cuba successful 1960. Masvidal is 1 of the 3 founding members of CANF, the Cuban American National Foundation.

Masvidal told CBS4’s Peter D’Oench that helium does not favour blocking highways and roads.

He said, “It is stupid. We shouldn’t bash that. Cubans shouldn’t bash that. It’s inconveniencing our neighbors, our ain neighbors successful Miami. I don’t deliberation it’s just for america to bash that and instrumentality implicit the streets. It doesn’t bash thing to adhd to the origin of Cuba.”

Masvidal disquieted that signifier of protestation would backfire with truthful galore radical stuck successful postulation for specified a agelong play of time.

“It is backfiring,” helium said. “It is backfiring and rightfully so. We don’t person the close to artifact streets erstwhile Cubans marque up 30 percent of the colonisation of Miami-Dade County. I don’t deliberation we tin inconvenience the different 70 percent who person thing to bash with this.”

Miami Police Chief Art Acevedo who was calved successful Cuba says helium favors the close to protestation but helium is against this signifier of protest.

“I americium not blessed astir what is going connected on the Palmetto,” helium said. “I would archer your viewers bash not artifact the freeways adjacent Miami due to the fact that I americium benignant and I americium each astir the archetypal amendment but determination are a batch of unintended consequences blocking the freeways. People who artifact them are successful danger. We conscionable can’t bash that benignant of stuff.”

CBS4 reached retired to the Florida Highway Patrol to effort to find retired wherefore it took truthful agelong to region protestors from the Palmetto Expressway but truthful acold that question has not been answered.

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Protestors connected Tuesday nighttime besides blocked the southbound lanes of I-95 adjacent Okeechobee Boulevard successful West Palm Beach, betwixt 5 p.m. and 9:15 p.m. earlier they were dispersed.