On Monday, Florida’s two U.S. senators--Democrat Bill Nelson and Republican Marco Rubio--teamed up with a South Florida congressman to urge the federal government to reimburse the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) for its work in the Parkland school shooting.
The senators and U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Fla., wrote the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and called on it to reimburse the FDLE $1 million for its efforts.
“We write in support of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s (FDLE) request for funds through the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) Precipitous Increase in Crime emergency funds. The horrific shooting in Parkland, Florida put a strain on state and local law enforcement resources, and the agencies are unable to absorb the additional costs resulting from this traumatic event,” the senators and Deutch wrote. “To date, the shooting resulted in 17 deaths and many others injured. First responders spent many hours processing the crime scene, conducting investigations, tending to victims, and monitoring the suspect while in custody. Because of this, state and local law enforcement incurred significant costs that they are unable to afford on their own. As such, we ask that you quickly approve FDLE’s request for $1,000,000 to reimburse for personnel and overtime, investigative, intelligence, and supervision expenses. Additionally, we ask that you quickly approve any amended request FDLE submits in the future.
“The community is still reeling from this tragedy, and law enforcement is doing their best to return some sense of safety and normalcy to those affected,” they added. “However, federal aid is needed in those efforts. Thank you for your attention to this request. We look forward to your response.”
Deutch’s district includes Parkland and he has played an increasingly large role in pushing for more gun control in the aftermath of the shooting. On Monday, Deutch joined U.S. Rep. David Cicilline, D-RI, and more than 150 other Democrats in Congress to unveil the "Assault Weapons Ban of 2018."
The bill would “prohibit the sale, transfer, production, and importation of: semi-automatic rifles and handguns with a military-style feature that can accept a detachable magazine; semi-automatic rifles and handguns with a fixed magazine that can hold more than 10 rounds; semi-automatic shotguns with a military-style feature; any ammunition feeding device that can hold more than 10 rounds; and 205 specifically-named and listed firearms.”
Deutch made the case for his bill on Monday.
"Americans don’t own tanks or missiles; so why should our streets be flooded with weapons of war made for the sole purpose of killing people? The Stoneman Douglas community is still reeling from this awful tragedy. But they want and deserve action from Congress," he said. "Banning assault weapons isn’t a Democratic idea, nor is it new; President Reagan supported the initial ban, which expired in 2004. Most Americans support the assault weapons ban. Now it’s time for Congress to listen and pass sensible legislation to get these weapons of war off our streets.”
“Assault weapons were made for one purpose. They are designed to kill as many people as possible in a short amount of time. They do not belong in our communities,” said Cicilline. “I am proud to introduce the Assault Weapons Ban with the support of leaders in law enforcement. It’s on all of us to end this carnage.”
On Tuesday, Deutch is scheduled to join U.S. Rep. John Rutherford, R-Fla., U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer, D-Wash., and U.S. Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Ky., to showcase the "Student, Teachers, and Officers Preventing (STOP) School Violence Act of 2018” which they brought out last month, before the shooting.
“The STOP School Violence Act would boost school efforts to develop violence prevention programs and coordinate with law enforcement to improve school safety,” Deutch’s office noted. “It would create a grant program to train students, teachers, school officials, and local law enforcement how to identify and intervene early when signs of violence arise and create a coordinated reporting system when threatening signs are noticed.”
