DeSantis warns spring breakers of 'law and order,' expands police presence across Florida

Gov. Ron DeSantis reminded spring breakers that Florida is a "law and order" state at an appearance in Miami Beach Tuesday morning, warning tourists of the consequences of "committing crimes, causing havoc."

"You are going to pay the price, and we will hold you accountable, because that's what we do here," DeSantis said. "Some people may be coming from other jurisdictions where they can get away with this type of activity. That is not going to fly in the Sunshine State."

DeSantis said 17 local law enforcement agencies across the state requested state assistance for spring break. South Florida will receive more than 60 state troopers, with most of them going to Miami Beach. Other cities like Daytona Beach and Panama City, will also receive back up.

Twenty-four members of the Florida Highway Patrol Quick Response Force team will go to Bay, Volusia, Broward and Miami-Dade counties, and drones and mobile command vehicles will be used to monitor traffic.

In Miami Beach, police will be using automated license plate readers to look for outstanding warrants and stolen vehicles, and law enforcement will be in plain clothes.

"You really have an opportunity to have fun, and we want to see people do that, but we also are going to insist that people respect the law, that order is kept in the streets and that our residents and local businesses are not negatively impacted by people here visiting," DeSantis said in front of a group of Florida Department of Law Enforcement officers and Florida Highway Patrol troopers.

Miami Beach focus of spring break 'havoc'

In 2021, Miami Beach made more than 1,000 arrests amongst spring breakers, leading them to issue an emergency curfew.

In 2022, two shootings injured five people, leading to another curfew. Last year, the Miami Beach Police Department said it conducted 488 arrests, impounded 105 firearms and issued 7,190 traffic citations between Feb. 27 and March 27.

DeSantis said there will also be increased security in Miami Beach's residential neighborhoods. The city will be limiting beach access and closing liquor stores early throughout March, and for March 7-10 and March 14-17, the city will close parking garages in South Beach.

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DeSantis also comments on U.S. southern border

DeSantis also used his appearance as another opportunity to address the U.S.-Mexico border and criticize the federal government, opening his announcement with an anecdote about the state's push to arrest an undocumented person with charges in Oregon for rape and sexual abuse.

Monday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested a 26-year-old Guatemalan man in Martin County for driving without a license. After he was released to an Alternatives to Detention program, law enforcement learned of the man's charges in Oregon, and ICE and local officials arrested the man, who originally entered the U.S. as an unaccompanied minor in 2015, according to an ICE press release.

The man was ordered to be deported back to Guatemala by a judge in 2019.

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"Today's another example of the fact that we are, despite of what the federal government may do, other states may do, other localities may do, we're a law and order state," he said.

As of late February, Miami has the third largest number of undocumented immigrants monitored by ICE's Alternatives to Detention programs, with 13,633 monitored. About 67% of those held in ICE detention do not have a criminal record, according to Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, a nonprofit data tracking organization out of Syracuse University.

Last month, DeSantis also has sent more than 1,000 Florida National Guard members and State Guard Soldiers to Texas to help stop what he called "the invasion at the southern border." They joined Highway Patrol, Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and FDLE members already there, a press release said.

USA TODAY contributed to this story. Ana Goñi-Lessan, state watchdog reporter for the USA TODAY Network – Florida, can be reached at agonilessan@gannett.com.