Don’t worry — it’s legal to wear mask
A little known state law makes it illegal to wear masks in public in Florida, making us all lawbreakers, according to numerous social media posts since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Unfortunately for people who may see these posts, not everyone giving legal advice on Twitter is a lawyer.
A sampling from Twitter and Facebook:
Most of these social media posts reference Florida statute 876.12. It states:
That would certainly seem to ban the wearing of masks in public.
But sorry, anti-mask readers, you should have also read Florida statute 876.155, which was enacted decades later. It states specifically that the previous statutes only apply to people who are wearing masks with the intent to intimidate others, deprive others of their civil rights or commit a crime.
“Intent matters,” said Dave Aronberg, the state attorney for Palm Beach County. “The statute in 876.12, enacted in 1951, does prohibit people from wearing a mask. But 30 years later, 1981, the statute was limited to people who were doing that with the intent to intimidate other people, deprive them of equal protection under the law, and with the intent to engage in criminal conduct. So, yes, intent matters.”
Businesses have also adapted their policies to the new normal.
Consider banks, which frowned upon sunglasses or caps — much less masks — because of the potential for robberies.
“Before, if there was a reason people needed to wear one, medically, they could. But in general, we did not allow that. If you would walk into a financial center, we would say please remove your cap,” said Carla Molina, a spokeswoman for Bank of America. “Obviously, today, customers can walk in with facial coverings. … The good news is, as a customer, if you’re trying to get cash, you don’t even have to take a mask off because we can identify you with the pin on your debit card.”
So wear your masks with the approval of Florida law, just so long as you don’t try to threaten or intimidate anyone while you’re doing it.
“The protesters who are on the steps of the Michigan state capitol, carrying guns with their faces covered, they could be violating the law, if Michigan had similar laws,” Aronberg said. “If you’re out there with the purpose of intimidating people, that could be a crime. If you’re just wearing a mask to protect yourself from coronavirus, it’s not a crime.”