“You Loot, We Shoot” Florida Has Something for Would Be Looters in Wake of Ian

Florida is a “law and order”, Second Amendment state. If you mess around and bust into someone’s house in the Sunshine state, you might get a face full of buckshot for your trouble.

Of course, criminals take every opportunity they can to do their bad deeds, and a generational hurricane is no different. Looters have been arrested in Florida in the aftermath of Ian. Recently, Ron DeSantis had a dire warning for would be thieves.

“Don’t even think about looting.”

“They boarded up all the businesses, and there are people that wrote on their plywood, ‘you loot, we shoot,’” DeSantis said during a press conference near Fort Myers in southwest Florida. “At the end of the day, we are not going to allow lawlessness to take advantage of this situation. We are a law-and-order state, and this is a law-and-order community, so do not think that you’re going to go take advantage of people who’ve suffered misfortune.”

Florida is a law and order state.

Looting and lawlessness will not be tolerated. pic.twitter.com/8Ma9RuSlPq

— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) October 1, 2022

It shouldn’t even have to be a warning. Any person with a shred of decency in them would not take advantage of something as horrific as Ian, but criminals are not noted for their decency. Looters have already been arrested, and Sheriff Carmine Marceno of Lee County, Florida is having none of it. Lee County is where Fort Myers Beach is located, and ground zero for damage.

“Sheriff Carmine Marceno means business and has taken a zero tolerance stance on looting. We are patrolling and you will be arrested if you partake in criminal activity,”

Marceno’s office has already arrested looters and posted their pictures on Lee County’s Facebook page for all to see. The Lee County Sheriff’s office is notorious for blasting criminals on social media. That’s not a place where you want to run afoul of the law.

DeSantis went on to later say:

“The other thing we’re concerned about, particularly in those areas that were really hard hit, is we want to make sure we’re maintaining law and order,” DeSantis said. “Don’t even think about looting. Don’t even think about taking advantage of people in this vulnerable situation.”

“I can tell you, in the state of Florida, you never know what may be lurking behind somebody’s home,” DeSantis said. “I would not want to chance that if I were you, given that we’re a Second Amendment state.”

Ron DeSantis shouldn’t have to give veiled warnings. Florida isn’t California or New York. People should be coming together for the greater good to help each other and lift each other up. No one alive has seen the kind of devastation Ian left in Southwest Florida. If that isn’t enough to make someone think twice before breaking into what’s left of a home or business, than perhaps Facebook posts and threats of violent retaliation are appropriate.

Thankfully the reports of looting have been few so far, and hopefully people will respect the law and other peoples property. Sheriff Marceno and Ron DeSantis are having none of the lawlessness and have no problem letting the rest of the world know what kind of dirtbag you are if you are caught looting. Perhaps looters could be put on the next bus to Chicago or New York City with illegal immigrants where they would feel more at home.

Florida will not tolerate looters taking advantage of #HurricaneIan to prey on vulnerable Floridians. They will be arrested and I have asked state attorneys to seek the longest pretrial detention possible to keep them locked up so they cannot commit new crimes. https://t.co/ORw0qJ1TbB

— AG Ashley Moody (@AGAshleyMoody) September 30, 2022

Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody summed it up:

“Florida will not tolerate looters taking advantage of Hurricane Ian to prey on vulnerable Floridians,” Moody wrote on Twitter. “They will be arrested and I have asked state attorneys to seek the longest pretrial detention possible to keep them locked up so they cannot commit new crimes.”

Florida is tough on crime, and prospective looters are going to find out the hard way by landing on Lee County’s facebook feed.