Ron DeSantis thought he was cracking down on left-wing radicals.
But his latest law just blew up in spectacular fashion.
And Ron DeSantis got humiliated after his anti-Trump protester law backfired in this stunning way.
DeSantis signed law aimed at Trump rally protesters
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has spent years building a reputation as the guy who fights back against the radical Left.
He signed sweeping anti-riot legislation in 2021 targeting Black Lives Matter protests.¹
He’s pushed through laws letting drivers hit protesters if they feel threatened.²
And this year, DeSantis signed another law designed to throw the book at anyone who disrupts President Trump’s appearances in Florida.
Under the new statute, anyone who crosses police barriers at ticketed events with crowds exceeding 5,000 faces third-degree felony charges.³
The potential punishment? Up to five years behind bars and a $5,000 fine.⁴
Running onto a field after your team wins now carries the same weight as crimes like aggravated assault or child abuse.⁵
Republican state Senator Joe Gruters asked during a March committee hearing if college football fans rushing the field would face felony charges.⁶
The bill’s author, Republican state Representative Jonathan Martin, made a crystal-clear promise.
"That’s not the intent, and they can quote me in the case law if that becomes an issue," Martin told the committee.⁷
"This is specifically intended to address the Secret Service efforts to keep our president safe while he’s in the state of Florida," Martin added.⁸
https://twitter.com/Sentinel_Sports/status/1977748592698786267
The law sailed through the Florida Legislature with only two Democrat state senators voting against it.⁹
DeSantis signed the measure in May and it took effect immediately.¹⁰
Four football fans become first felony targets of anti-Trump protest law
On October 4, the University of Florida pulled off a massive upset against the University of Texas, winning 29-21.¹¹
Four excited fans rushed onto Steve Spurrier-Florida Field to celebrate with the team.¹²
Police arrested all four and charged them with third-degree felonies under DeSantis’s new law.¹³
Two were UF students – 21-year-old Landon Beckham Kingsle Kefford from Parkland, Florida, and 19-year-old Danek Everett Blalock Cirafesi from Somerville, New Jersey.¹⁴
The other two were 35-year-old Kevin Wilcox Joy from Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, and 27-year-old John Paul Schmidt from Greensboro, North Carolina.¹⁵
The students were banned from the stadium for three years, while the older fans were banned from the entire campus.¹⁶
These four fans became the first people in Florida to face felony charges under a law that was supposedly written to stop Trump protesters.
The contrast with other Florida schools couldn’t be more stark.
In August, thousands of Florida State fans swarmed the field after their team beat Alabama in a stunning upset.¹⁷
Not a single arrest.¹⁸
The ACC fined Florida State $50,000 under conference policy, but no fans faced criminal charges.¹⁹
Two previous arrests under the new law involved fans at Miami sporting events, but both were charged with misdemeanors under different provisions of the statute.²⁰
The UF fans are the first to get hit with felony charges.
Even legendary former UF coach Steve Spurrier thinks the whole thing is ridiculous.
"When I watch these other schools do it, that’s a memory of a lifetime for those students," Spurrier told reporters.²¹
Spurrier famously encouraged UF fans last year to rush the field if the Gators beat LSU.²²
The Gators won 27-16, but fans stayed in their seats that time.²³
UF is one of the only SEC schools with no recorded history of fans ever rushing the field as a crowd.²⁴
DeSantis’ pattern of overly broad laws backfires again
The felony charges against college football fans expose a glaring problem with how DeSantis writes his anti-protest laws.
He pushes broadly worded statutes designed to hammer left-wing activists, but the language is so sweeping that it ends up targeting people doing completely normal activities.
This isn’t the first time DeSantis has seen one of his anti-protest laws blow up in his face.
DeSantis’ 2021 "anti-riot" law got dragged into court almost immediately by civil rights groups.²⁵
A federal judge took one look at it and shut down key provisions in September 2021.²⁶
The judge wasn’t subtle about it either – he called the law "vague and overbroad" and said it violated First Amendment rights.²⁷
The case bounced around the courts for three years until the Florida Supreme Court finally stepped in last June and said the law can’t be used against peaceful protesters.²⁸
Here’s the embarrassing part – both DeSantis and the ACLU claimed they won.²⁹
The ACLU said the court confirmed "the anti-protest law cannot be used to prosecute non-violent protesters."³⁰
DeSantis’s office praised the same ruling.³¹
When both sides are celebrating the same court decision, you know somebody wrote a law so confusing that nobody can figure out what it actually does.³²
The pattern is clear – DeSantis signs laws with tough-sounding names that promise to crack down on radicals, but writes them so broadly that courts spend years trying to clean up the mess.
The 2025 law supposedly came about because of the Copa America disaster at Hard Rock Stadium last July.³³
Thousands of fans crashed the gates without tickets.³⁴
Police kicked out 54 people and arrested 26 under the old misdemeanor trespassing laws.³⁵
But Representative Martin told lawmakers the real target was protesters disrupting Trump’s Florida appearances.
The Trump administration has been going after "antifa" and investigating left-wing groups bankrolling Democrat campaigns.³⁶
Congress has introduced bills threatening huge fines and prison time for campus protests and climate demonstrations.³⁷
Florida keeps getting sued over these anti-protest laws, with civil rights groups arguing DeSantis is trying to shut down anyone exercising their First Amendment rights.³⁸
So now DeSantis’ anti-protest law is prosecuting excited college students celebrating their team beating Texas – exactly what the bill’s author swore wouldn’t happen.
Two of the fans cut deals Monday to get the charges dropped if they keep their noses clean for six months.³⁹
The other two said not guilty and they’re staring down potential felony convictions.⁴⁰
When you write laws broad enough to catch everyone, don’t be surprised when they snag the wrong people.
DeSantis wanted to look tough on radical leftist protesters disrupting Trump rallies.
Instead, his law is prosecuting Trump-supporting football fans celebrating a big win against Texas.
That’s not fighting the culture war – that’s losing it through your own incompetence.
¹ Roseanne Dunkelberger, "A Judge Has Blocked The ‘Anti-Riot’ Law Passed In Florida After George Floyd Protests," NPR, September 10, 2021.
² Alex Woodward, "Four Florida football fans face felony charges for running on field — under law intended to stop protests at Trump rallies," The Independent, October 13, 2025.
³ "New Florida law targets unruly fan behavior at sporting events," WUSF, May 21, 2025.
⁴ Alex Woodward, "Four Florida football fans face felony charges for running on field — under law intended to stop protests at Trump rallies," The Independent, October 13, 2025.
⁵ "New law targeting Trump protesters used on UF fans who ran onto football field," WGCU, October 13, 2025.
⁶ Ibid.
⁷ Ibid.
⁸ Ibid.
⁹ Alex Woodward, "Four Florida football fans face felony charges for running on field — under law intended to stop protests at Trump rallies," The Independent, October 13, 2025.
¹⁰ "New Florida law targets unruly fan behavior at sporting events," WUSF, May 21, 2025.
¹¹ "New law targeting Trump protesters used on UF fans who ran onto football field," WGCU, October 13, 2025.
¹² – ¹⁸ Ibid.
¹⁹ "ACC fines Florida State $50,000 under new policy after fans storm field following upset over Alabama," Fox News, September 2, 2025.
²⁰ "New law targeting Trump protesters used on UF fans who ran onto football field," WGCU, October 13, 2025.
²¹ Ibid.
²² Ibid.
²³ Ibid.
²⁴ Ibid.
²⁵ "Dream Defenders v. Desantis: Challenging Florida’s Anti-Protest Law," NAACP Legal Defense Fund, April 18, 2025.
²⁶ Roseanne Dunkelberger, "A Judge Has Blocked The ‘Anti-Riot’ Law Passed In Florida After George Floyd Protests," NPR, September 10, 2021.
²⁷ "DeSantis’ Anti-Riot Law Bolstered by Florida Supreme Court," Bloomberg Law, June 20, 2024.
²⁸ "DeSantis’ Anti-Riot Law Bolstered by Florida Supreme Court," Bloomberg Law, June 20, 2024.
²⁹ "Florida Supreme Court Issues Decision Confirming that Anti-Protest Law Cannot Be Used to Prosecute Non-Violent Protestors or Bystanders," ACLU of Florida, June 21, 2024.
³⁰ Ibid.
³¹ "DeSantis’ Anti-Riot Law Bolstered by Florida Supreme Court," Bloomberg Law, June 20, 2024.
³² Analysis based on dual victory claims from both parties.
³³ "New law targeting Trump protesters used on UF fans who ran onto football field," WGCU, October 13, 2025.
³⁴ Ibid.
³⁵ Ibid.
³⁶ Alex Woodward, "Four Florida football fans face felony charges for running on field — under law intended to stop protests at Trump rallies," The Independent, October 13, 2025.
³⁷ Ibid.
³⁸ Ibid.
³⁹ "New law targeting Trump protesters used on UF fans who ran onto football field," WGCU, October 13, 2025.
⁴⁰ Ibid.
