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ALISA ULFERTSSen. Les Miller's bill comes after Hell on Earth's promise to allow a suicide on stage.
TALLAHASSEE - State Sen. Les Miller had a near visceral reaction when he heard last month that a rock group planned to feature a live suicide on stage in St. Petersburg.
"I just think it was one of the most hideous ideas I've ever heard," said the Tampa Democrat.
So does St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Baker, who asked Miller to sponsor legislation banning suicide as a form of public entertainment.
Miller agreed and if his bill (SB 398) becomes law next year, no Florida community will have to scramble the way St. Petersburg did to block performances featuring suicides.
"I think if you don't have a statewide policy, then the people would just hop from one jurisdiction to another," Baker said.
The controversy began last month when Hell On Earth announced plans to feature a suicide on stage as part of a concert at the State Theater. The St. Petersburg group is known for publicity-seeking antics involving cow's blood and breast milk, and past concerts have featured scantily clad women wrestling in chocolate syrup and band leader Billy Tourtelot grinding up live rats in a blender.
The suicide was intended as a statement in support of the right-to-die movement, although national organizations affiliated with the cause denounced the plan. Some critics speculated it was a publicity stunt.
The St. Petersburg City Council quickly moved to ban anyone from promoting public suicides, and a judge ordered the group to stop selling tickets.
Pinellas County soon followed suit.
Miller's bill would prohibit anyone from advertising, performing or selling tickets to a show featuring "self-murder," a term already in the Florida statutes. Miller makes an exception for acts of "simulated self-murder" such as in plays or movies, as long as the audience is informed no actual suicide is planned.
Violators would be guilty of a third-degree felony and punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Miller said that doesn't mean the actors playing the lead roles in Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet would have to announce that they are not really killing themselves. Still, promoters of lesser-known dramatic works or performance pieces might have to include a disclaimer in the printed program.