By Hannah Pinski
Lexington Herald-Leader
LEXINGTON, Ky. — A bill to criminalize harassing or impeding a first responder, including police, EMTs and firefighters, took a significant step toward becoming Kentucky law Thursday.
Senate Bill 104, also known as the Halo Act, passed the state Senate on party lines with all six Democrats voting no and 32 Republicans voting yes.
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The legislation would create a 25-foot buffer zone around first responders “engaged in the lawful performance of his or her duties” and make it illegal to interfere, threaten or harass them after being given a warning. A first responder includes medics, local law enforcement and federal law enforcement, including Immigration and Custom Enforcement agents.
Supporters of the bill say it will protect first responders while doing their jobs. But critics say it violates First Amendment rights and note there’s already laws on the books protecting first responders.
Sen. Matt Nunn , R- Sadieville , is the bill’s primary sponsor, said he filed the bill to protect first responders who are helping Kentuckians.
“(An EMT) drove up to Frankfort to shake my hand and thank (me) for filing this bill and explain the circumstances conditions that he and his colleagues face almost on a daily basis, responding to calls when they’re trying to provide often, life-saving care to people in need,” Nunn said.
If someone enters and remains within a 25-foot buffer zone after a warning, the first three offenses are misdemeanors. For fourth offenses and beyond, the person would be charged with a Class D felony.
According to the bill, harassment is defined as intentionally engaging “in a course of conduct directed at a first responder which causes or is intended to cause substantial emotional distress in the first responder and serves no legitimate purpose.”
Sen. Phillip Wheeler , R- Pikeville , called a vote against the bill a vote against first responders.
Wheeler said people don’t have the right to intervene with a law enforcement officer’s work. He recognized there have been “tragic things” happen in other states, but added “there’s a real simple rule you can follow to avoid all of this.”
“If you comply, you don’t die,” Wheeler said. “If you don’t insert yourself in to a (situation with) law enforcement officer who his performing his duty that is already a highly intense situation, you’re gonna be just fine.”
In Minnesota, federal agents have come under scrutiny following the fatal shooting of two American citizens in January.
During a surge of federal officers to the state to carry out the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti , and Renee Good , a 37-year-old mother, were killed by federal agents in two separate incidents.
Sen. Keturah Herron, D- Louisville, took issue with Wheeler’s comments and said they were a “huge disrespect” to Black Kentuckians and Black Americans.
Before joining the legislature, Herron was instrumental in the effort to ban no-knock search warrants, called Breonna’s Law in honor of Breonna Taylor, the 26-year-old Black woman fatally shot in her apartment by Louisville Metro Police in March 2020. “As a Black woman that is in this body, I will not tolerate such disrespect, especially during this Black History Month,” Herron said.
Sen. Cassie Chambers Armstrong, D- Louisville, said there are already laws in place if someone is getting in the way of a working first responder. She also brought up concerns that this is not a “Kentucky-grown law” that addresses Kentucky problems and instead mirrors legislation introduced in other states.
Florida has its own version of the Halo Act that went into effect in January 2025 , which created a 25-foot safety zone around active law enforcement and emergency personnel.
Outside groups have also raised alarm bells about issues with the First Amendment, including the ACLU of Kentucky.
SB 104 seeks to criminalize “harassment” and conduct that “causes or is intended to cause substantial emotional distress […] and serves no legitimate purpose,” Angela Cooper, ACLU of Kentucky communications director, said.
“The is based on subjective interpretation and allows law enforcement’s discretion on when an individual is in violation of the law, which will likely result in arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement,” she said. “Free speech is a cornerstone of democracy, and the ACLU of Kentucky will defend Kentuckians’ right to free expression any time it is threatened.”
Sen. Donald Douglas , R- Nicholasville , meanwhile called Nunn’s measure a “common sense bill.”
“When you’re trying to save lives, whether it’s your son or your daughter, your mother or father, do you want that first responder being bothered, or is it just you don’t mind them being bothered when it’s someone else’s family?” Douglas said.
SB 104 now heads to the House for consideration.
Would a 25-foot safety zone help your crews operate more effectively, or could it create new challenges during calls?
FireRescue1 readers respond:
- Yes. People get in the way and are not always doing it with bad intentions. But they can impede your work. There is no First Amendment issue here. You can still say what you want, just 25 feet away. We had a baby in cardiac arrest. EMS was still 7-10 minutes out. We put the baby with a firefighter still performing CPR and went at an emergency rate to the hospital. There were comments both negative and positive. Several, including EMS, thought we should’ve waited. Our fire chief was not happy with us and was going to discipline several firefighters and an officer. In the end, it was all dropped. Unfortunately, the baby did not survive. It’s fair. Too many times, EMS relies on the FD to either cover these or assist their crew. EMS bills and collects for the call and the FD gets nothing (at least in PA!) There needs to be a better system. Yes they should. Are traumatic events “expected” in our line of work? Absolutely. But that doesn’t make them any less of an issue for our brains. We all process things in different ways. We won’t all see the same calls in our career. Obviously, we can’t know all the details from one article, but a decision at a state supreme court level can be used widely against others. I was an active union officer for many years. The municipality is always looking for issues like this to argue their cases. I’m not saying the union side is always right. But an issue like this can have far-reaching impacts. We are supposed to be recognizing mental health issues as true job concerns, not pushing us back to burying them in our minds and not asking for help. I just feel it sets a dangerous precedent. I’m not sure if the NPS should take over, but something has to be done. Those salaries are absolutely ridiculous, especially the percentage of raises in such a short time. $36 a person admission is pretty steep. That’s $144 for a family of four. It needs to be overhauled for sure! Sorry to put those employees in the unemployment line but that $$ is way too much.
- Our job is save life and protect property. If we can’t do our job as a first responder, than the 1st amendment rights of the people we were called to save/protect are delayed /interfered with. Not to mention the safety of the 1st responders.
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