‘Halo Law’ aims to protect first responders in 2025

With the new year comes plenty of new laws. Among them is a 25-foot-no-approach zone around first responders on the job.

This means that if an officer, firefighter or EMS worker verbally warns somebody to stay back and that person continues to approach, they could get in some serious trouble.

From fines and potential jail time to seizing your phone, or anything you might be recording with, the new law is serious, but only if you don’t heed the warnings and continue to threaten and harass first responders on the job.

Florida’s new “Halo Law” is something Bonita Springs Fire Chief Gregg Dewitt and many local law enforcement agencies can get behind.

The law offers them safety and security while they work scenes.

“It’s their peace of mind to know that, look, we’ve got a law behind us. We’re going to be safe, and law enforcement is going to be there to help us,” said Dewitt. “Myself went up to state legislature to speak on behalf of this, on normal on numerous occasions over the years through the Florida Fire Chiefs Association, so you know, we’ve known about it, we’ve asked for it, and the state legislature was great enough to do it.”

Dewitt knows all too well what it’s like to respond to a scene and have to worry about his and his team’s safety.

“On a fire, it’s a lot different. You got homeowners, you’ve got family members, ‘My dog, my cat, my relatives’ in there and try and tell us how to do our job,” said Dewitt. “Same thing with vehicle accidents … but it’s those larger calls that have the tendency to draw a crowd.”

This is what this law aims to avoid: crowds, interference and any threats.

With a 25-foot no-approach zone, The law aims to give first responders a safe space to work.

“Their goal is not to arrest people. Their goal is not to manhandle and push people out of the way. Their job is to just keep the scene safe for the responders themselves,” said Dewitt. “It’s not going to be that stringent. ‘Oh, you’re 22 feet, you’re going to jail’ type thing. It’s going to be that, you know that courtesy area. Just give us room to do our job. That’s what it is.”

Many people told WINK off-camera that they don’t see a problem with that because they’re not going out of their way to get in that kind of trouble.

The Halo Law starts Wednesday.