Photo: Getty Images
Antisemitism has been on the minds of local authorities as the number of incidents being reported has been going up.
During a recent town hall event to tackle the subject, Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw was asked how bad the situation is locally.
"I'm not gonna say bad bad, but I'm gonna say it's enhanced from what it was. But in our estimation, one is too many."
He says unfortunately, his hands are tied when it comes to things like those flyers that have been dropped off in driveways of homes and on cars in the Sheriff's Office parking lot.
"No matter what the nastiest is that's been spewed in here, it's littering. That's why we're hoping the Legislature is going to enhance the penalties of somebody that's going to distribute this type of information."
There have been bills filed in both chambers in Tallahassee to criminalize distributing any material that evidences religious or ethnic animus and make it a crime to project anything on the side of a building you don't own. This after groups have been caught putting swastikas and other hateful rhetoric on buildings in West Palm Beach and elsewhere around the state.
Sheriff Bradshaw says his agency is monitoring these antisemitic groups and if their incidents escalate to a criminal point, his deputies will be waiting.
"We know who they are we know where they're at. And I can tell you right now, if they come to Palm Beach County and they stand on the roadside and do what they need to do and inhibit the rights of the people who live here, they're going to jail...period."