Republican lawmaker Jim Banks proposes to introduce a new legislation that would force arrested participants of illegal demonstrations to pay for expenses including law enforcement overtime because of the protests, as reported by Washington Free Beacon.
Washington has seen a fair number of protests recently where the radical left is increasingly relying on civil disobedience to attract media attention. This has led to more police resources being utilized to maintain order, which has inflated expenses.
Banks told the Free Beacon that, “Illegal protests harm public discourse. We need to hold illegal protesters accountable and let taxpayers off the hook for subsidizing their illegal activity.”
He further stated, “One of the side effects of this bill is that it would cause groups like antifa to pay police for their unlawful counter-protest.”
However, the Republican took care to confirm that the bill will not affect legal protests or prohibit demonstrations on the National Mall like the Women’s March since they obtained legal permits.
Banks took to social media as well to share details of the legislation in planning. He tweeted that “Under my bill, a person will be responsible for public safety response costs incurred by the District of Columbia’s response to a demonstration if, in connection with the demonstration, the person is convicted of a felony or misdemeanor offense.” The lawmaker is hoping for bipartisan support on the bill
