I usually leave Sundays alone but happy news need to be shared, specially in this time of the year.
Introduced by Senate Judiciary Chairman Greg Steube (R-Sarasota) SB140 makes me warm fuzzy all over. What does the bill have? I am glad you asked.
1 – Open Carry Of Handgun with a Concealed Weapons Permit. Although be ready for the Opposition to scream that now any gang banger can OC without problem. One of the things you must do is to show the proper IDs upon demand to Law Enforcement. Failing to do so is a non-criminal violation with a penalty of $25.
2 – Courts will have to provide secure storage of firearms. You still cannot get inside with a gun, but you will be allowed to leave your handgun with security or leave it in a locker provided by the court. Get ready to hear loud screaming about this one, specially about costs.
3- A bunch of Gun Free Zones are eliminated. The following are no longer gun free zones if the bill becomes law: Governing body of a county, public school district, municipality, or special district, the Legislature or a committee thereof, elementary or secondary school facility or administration building or any career center, college or university and passenger terminals. What remains a Gun Free Zone? Courtrooms, polling places, School, College or professional athletic events not related to firearms, Bars and the bar part of a restaurant and any place prohibited by federal law (which includes Federal Courts! Don’t screw up on that one!)
I want ALL passed but I expect some stuff will be lost to political dealing, and so should you. Maybe elementary or secondary schools plus some of the municipal and county meeting stuff. The Court storage provision will have a tough time being protested if the funds are allocated. What I see missing is the institution of the narrow interpretation of the Second Amendment to the laws of Florida. Maybe it is coming in another bill or gets traded in for some of those Gun Free Zones.
Kinda premature, but I am going Happy Dance on this.
I’ll join in the happy dance. They’re at least TRYING to restore some of our rights. They get credit for the effort.
If it keeps dying in committee, though, I am going to start taking the position that they are only introducing these bills as a pander to us gunnies because they have the sure knowledge that such things never pass because they never get a vote.
Yep. The Republicans have been doing Kabuki theater on a wide variety of issues for a loooong time now. Time has come to stop accepting their excuses for failure.
At the risk of committing the sacrilege of linking with cars, Minnesota doesn’t ban carry in bars. However, as with autos, carrying while intoxicated is illegal. The current standard for being considered intoxicated for cars is .08 BAC. The standard for carrying is half that, or .04 BAC.
Has anything like this been proposed in Florida?
There is something similar in Fla Law. I don’t recall the statute exactly or the BAC content.
I am surprised that a bill was not offered and passed after the Pulse Nightclub Terrorist Attack? Many other states do allow carry in bars as long as the carrier is not impaired.
We have designated drivers. Why not designated LTC persons too? I don’t think those people that bled to death in Pulse would have objected to an armed citizen defending them.
With the re-election defeat of Senator Douchebag, um, Senator De La Portilla, I feel a bit more optimistic about the chances than I would have if he was still there.
With De La Ouchebag out, we get to see if it’s institutional to the leadership in Tallahassee or if it’s because of a couple intransigent jerks.
Fingers crossed!
If they scream too loudly, just point them to WA state… everything you’ve listed is ‘The Law’ up here* and HAS been since well before Florida started their shall-issue laws way back when.
*And then some…we don’t need a permission slip to OC. Hell, I OC’d into the Sheriff’s office the last time I renewed my CHL,