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https://www.tallahassee.com/story/news/ ... 072304007/

A Labor Day weekend glass bottle attack of two Pennsylvania students wearing yarmulkes has prompted Rep. Randy Fine, R-Brevard, to renew his pledge to file legislation to repeal Florida’s “gun-free zone” for state college and university campuses.

Fine’s pledge comes in the wake of gun activists filing a federal lawsuit in South Florida to have Florida’s open-carry ban declared unconstitutional, and after Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Republican Legislature earlier this year eliminated a requirement for a concealed weapon permit to carry firearms in public.

Gun Owners of America, which filed the lawsuit, said this year's changes in Florida gun regulations did not go far enough and criticized DeSantis for not pushing for further expansion of Second Amendment rights.

Florida joins 18 states in prohibiting firearms on college campuses.

DeSantis quietly signed the permitless carry bill last year, and the 2024 legislative session was the first since 2016 a campus carry proposal did not get a committee hearing.

DeSantis has told groups like Gun Owners of America he would support open-carry legislation, which would include campus carry, but gun rights advocates have been disappointed he has not pushed the issue with more force.

Last session, Senate President Kathleen Passidomo held the line on open-carry after talking to the Florida Sheriff's Association.

“The sheriffs who I deeply respect, who are in the business, who understand the issues, do not support open carry in the state of Florida,” Passidomo said.

A question on whether Senate President designate Ben Albritton would take a similar tact is pending with his office.

Florida is among 18 states that prohibit firearms on college campuses.

“Even though Florida claims to be the freest state in the nation it prosecutes Floridians who want to openly carry firearms,” said Valdes of Gun Owners of America.

The group endorses the campus carry bill Fine is writing.

“It’s appalling that the states that border Florida have campus carry but Florida does not,” Valdes said.

Can you please post these to X and tag FSN?

Florida's official response to our lawsuit. They have filed a MOTION TO DISMISS OR, IN THE ALTERNATIVE, MOTION TO STAY AND INCORPORATED MEMORANDUM OF LAW.

The State of Florida is basically arguing that our suit has no standing and that gun control is constitutional.

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/09/2 ... y-00180553



Florida’s Republican attorney general won’t fight a challenge to the state’s ban on openly carrying firearms, sidestepping a court fight in the nation’s third largest state.

Gun rights activists did push to scrap Florida’s long-standing open carry law when legislators eliminated permit requirements for concealed weapons. DeSantis said he was willing to consider allowing open carry, but certain legislative leaders — including outgoing state Senate President Kathleen Passidomo — opposed the move. Passidomo cited opposition from Florida’s sheriffs as one of the reasons she did not support open carry.

Gun Owners of America, along with a Palm Beach County gun owner, filed a lawsuit in early August calling the state’s ban on open carry a “blatant infringement” of the Second Amendment rights of Floridians and a violation of equal protection rights.

The gun lawsuit is still in the early stages, although initially those challenging the law nearly got a default judgment because there was no initial response by the defendants.

Luis Valdes, Florida state director for Gun Owners of America, said that only Moody could answer why she has not gotten involved in the lawsuit.

But he said that the organization brought the lawsuit in federal court because the GOP supermajority in the Legislature may “claim to be pro-gun” but their decision to block open carry legislation “reflects their lack of support for the Second Amendment.” Valdes also criticized DeSantis for failing to get legislators to act.

“Florida is the only conservative state in the country to ban open carry and so called pro-gun officials have failed to repeal this gun control,” Valdes said.