The Florida Supreme Court will hear arguments next week in a dispute over a 2011 state law that allows for penalties if city and county officials pass gun regulations. The hearing comes amid a ramped-up debate over gun laws due to recent mass shootings in Texas and New York.
The case made it to the Supreme Court when a coalition of local governments and Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried filed notices back in June 2021. The notices were the initial steps in asking the Supreme Court to hear the case and came a month after the 1st District Court of Appeal denied a request to send the case to the Supreme Court.
The efforts to get the issue in front of the Supreme Court came after a Tallahassee-based appeals court upheld the constitutionality of the 2011 law in April, 2021
Since 1987, Florida has barred cities and counties from passing regulations that are stricter than state firearms laws, and the penalties in the 2011 law were designed to strengthen that “preemption.”
The law was challenged by local governments and officials who were urged to take action after the February 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland that killed 17 people. However, attorneys for the local governments indicated in a 2019 court document that the requested actions were not taken up by elected officials due to the potential penalties outlined in the 2011 state law.
The requested actions included requiring procedures or documentation to ensure compliance with background checks and waiting periods for gun purchases and requiring reporting of failed background checks.
Along with officials facing the possibility of fines and removal from office, the law would allow members of the public and organizations to receive damages and attorney fees if they successfully sue local governments for improper gun regulations.
The local governments and officials contended the penalties in the 2011 law were unconstitutional.
In a friend-of-the-court brief, the NRA said the law was needed as “local governments wish to continue imposing ordinances to unlawfully regulate the sale, possession and use of firearms and ammunition.”
But attorneys for the League of Women Voters of Florida, the Giffords Law Center, Brady, and the Equality Florida Institute wrote that the law will “chill legitimate exercises of local legislative authority.”
“In sum, the NRA has presented no evidence of rogue local officials willfully violating state law or constitutional rights,” the groups’ brief said. “On the contrary, the NRA’s examples show local legislators working in good faith on solutions to difficult policy problems. The state’s and the NRA’s effort to punish local legislators for pursuing such solutions underscores the importance of legislative immunity.”
The oral arguments before the Florida Supreme Court will begin on June 9.
Florida Supreme Court to Hear Arguments Related to Local Government Gun Regulations added by Steve Stewart on
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@ Pat A: A quote from “Smokey and the Bandit”?
@Todd. I don’t hate anyone. I do dislike Democrats and Progressives. But I don’t hate them. At my age, I’m just trying to survive. The honest truth is the vast majority of crime comes from the black community.
tODD,
You can’t break us. Love thy trolls, forgive thy trolls, pray for thy trolls.
Accept the love, Todd.
@Todd. Too funny especially considering you have a little brain. You do not scare me. Come get sum. BTW do the initials F and U mean anything to you?
Wow…Pat A Fag ,u really don’t have much common sense do u boy…if u hate black and brown people so be it.. But ur racist ass will be shot down if u think I DONT OWN GUNS Boy…
What we need is to stop Florida from making gun laws stricter than the constitution, which is to say none. Pass Constitutional carry.
The FL SUPREMES will rule with honesty truth and the law as written.
Be thankful it’s not going before Federal Judge Hinkle who rules with decite lies and leftist opinions as he takes his joy in legislating from the bench always with a woke twisted leftist slant.
So other than taking a truthfull joyfull moment to bash leftist Judge Hinkel I am totally happy the FLORIDA SUPREMES are going to rule on this!!!!!!
First off, know what the Fake News Media and Democrats consider a “mass shooting”. In there opinion a “mass shooting” is any instant when four or more people are shot which includes inner-city, black on black, crime where gang members are shooting gang members. As far as I am concerned, if criminals want to kill each other-have at it. The real outrage is all the killings that occur daily in Chicago but democrats do not have a solution for that so lets not talk about it.
Now more than ever, you should own a gun for personal protection. The AR is an excellent choice for home protection. Nothing deters an intruder like an AR-15 loaded with a 40 round clip. Rock Island Arms makes a 12 gauge semi-automatic on an AR platform. All be it heavy, you can get a 20 round clip. No one will “F” with you when you own one of those beauties…i.e. VR60.
Guns are great investments. At age 10 I got my first rifle. It was a Remington 552 Speed Master. I own one today. It holds 16 22LR, tube feed, and semi-automatic. Perfect for thinning out the Squirrell population.
I will be glad when Nikki Fried Chicken is gone. How that Lib-tard got elected is beyond me. Her and the Wacko’s always go after the law abiding citizen when a criminal commits a crime. I have owned a semi-automatic rifle for 52 years. And that is Democrats.
I love collecting guns. Call me if you have any to sell.
In this article itself, there is a clear and obvious flaw in the reasoning/arguments that allowed this to be pushed to the FSC… to wit…
“However, attorneys for the local governments indicated in a 2019 court document that the requested actions were not taken up by elected officials due to the potential penalties outlined in the 2011 state law.”
… followed with…
““In sum, the NRA has presented no evidence of rogue local officials willfully violating state law or constitutional rights,” the groups’ brief said.”
If they admit that local government took no action inconsistent with the State law, then it serves to prove that the NRA would have no evidence of local governments taking action inconsistent with State Law.
This is a complete waste of taxpayer resources. There is only one US Constitution, and thus, only on 2nd Amendment
The City and County has NO BUSINESS messing with Gun Laws BUT, if they really want to do something worth while, get the US Supreme Court to make all Carry Permits 50 State Legal.
Waste of time. Just ask Deathsantis what they are going to rule. Duh