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National Guard, Scott Back Emergency Concealed Carry Measure
March 26, 2014
A measure backed by the National Rifle Association that would allow people to conceal a firearm without a license during an emergency now has the open support of Gov. Rick Scott and the Florida National Guard but is still on hold in the Senate.
St. Petersburg Republican Sen. Jeff Brandes on Tuesday for the second time delayed a vote on his bill (296), now seemingly stalled in the Senate Military and Veterans Affairs, Space, and Domestic Security Committee.
“Clearly we’re going to continue to work with law enforcement and the agencies involved to come up with a better product,” Brandes said Tuesday after again postponing a vote on the measure.
The bill could still advance because the committee may hold up to two more meetings, Chairman Thad Altman, R-Melbourne said.
Scott and the National Guard this week came out in support of the plan after NRA lobbyist Marion Hammer took issue with objections to the bill expressed by the chief lawyer for the Florida Department of Military Affairs. The agency is overseen by Scott, who is seeking re-election this year.
Hammer said she questioned the governor’s aides about comments made by Capt. Terrence Gorman, general counsel for the military agency, at a March 19 meeting.
“I’m not interested in bringing law enforcement on board. This is about law-abiding people being able to protect themselves in a time of emergency,” Hammer told reporters after the vote was postponed on Tuesday. “It is not about the convenience of law enforcement.”
Allowing people who have not had the required training to carry firearms during stress-filled times like evacuations can create a potentially “tricky” situation, Gorman told the panel during a March 19 meeting.
“When people aren’t thinking clearly … they probably shouldn’t have a weapon shoved in the back of their pants,” Gorman said last week.
After Gorman’s testimony, Sen. Charlie Dean, an Inverness Republican and former Citrus County sheriff, said he would no longer support the measure.
But in the wake of Hammer’s visit and at the request of Scott’s staff, the head of the Florida National Guard, Maj. Gen. Emmett Titshaw, sent Altman a letter saying the Guard backs the bill.
“Capt. Terrence Gorman is not authorized to speak for the Department of Military Affairs on legislative issues,” Titshaw wrote on March 20. “Department of Military Affairs supports Senate Bill 296.”
Titshaw said Tuesday that Gorman was only providing information last week.
“As the questioning proceeded, the perception could have been that he was in opposition of the bill,” Titshaw added.
Scott’s office confirmed that Titshaw was asked to write the letter and that the governor supports the bill.
“Our office took action to correct an inaccurate representation of this administration’s policy during a Senate committee meeting,” Scott spokeswoman Jackie Schutz said in an email on Tuesday.
Brandes’ bill is slated for another committee stop before reaching the Senate floor for a full vote.
The House companion (HB 209) by Rep. Heather Fitzenhagen, R-Fort Myers, is scheduled for a vote by the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday, the bill’s final stop before it reaches the floor.
by Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
Comments
9 Responses to “National Guard, Scott Back Emergency Concealed Carry Measure”
There is nothing in the 2nd Amendment that requires training. 47 states currently have open carry laws, and Florid’a ban will shortly be overturned in the Norman vs. State case. From these 47 states and two hundred years of open carry, we do not have horror stories of masses of citizens running amok wreaking havoc…just a few psychos, and many criminals with illegal guns, mainly in big cities.
The “well-regulated” aspect of the 2A pertains to how the militia is organized once it is called up, and that pertains to structure. Like it or not, according to Heller, we ARE the militia as soon as we own a firearm. The militia pre-exists any call up. This is why Senator Dean and the FSA are so incredibly stupid and ignorant, and such traitors for opposing the rights of people to protect themselves. People need to vote him out of office, and not contribute to the FSA.
This sounds like it could be a trap.
Duke of Wawbeek, when is the last time you saw a DHS person before, during, or after a storm. Remember, when seconds count, the cops are just minutes away.
We do not need reckless armed civilians running around, when the Department of Homeland Security is in place to provide for everyone’s defense needs. They are more than equipped to deal with any problems that may arise.
First thing. There is no two or three steps when it comes to carrying a handgun in your car. The Law states it must be in a holster with a snap. The training you receive to get you CCL does not make you a professional CCL holder. It is only a gun familarization course at best which briefly skims over state law. The training, practice and further education you do after the fact will help.I think Open Carry for all is the fix but Evers and Getz are political cowards and pulled the bill.
At some point in your lives, you have to trust folks will do the right thing. These 2nd amendment rights are for all law abiding citizens and shall not be infringed. So if you think people are inadequately trained, thats a societal risk to deal with. All in this Florida are subject to FS 790 and FS 776, trained or not. And No Excuses, please explain how citizens can carry, just not concealed. This is not the case in Florida unless hunting, fishing, etc. Also there is no “two step” process I’ve ever read about. Are you in another state besides Florida?
Citizens can carry weapons now without a permit, both in their cars and on their persons – they just cannot be concealed while on their person and must have a “two step” process to get to the weapon in their cars. I don’t really see the point of this law, other than to make it possible to protect yourself better in an emergency situation. That’s about it.
So the next time we have a hurricane, we’ll have a bunch of armed, stressed out people in cars in bumper to bumper traffic with absolutely no firearms training. What coudl possibly could wrong?
I agree with Gorman’s point about untrained people carrying firearms being risky in ANY situation. That is why I choose to carry – especially during emergency situations because you never know what kind of untrained person you will come up against (be it an armed looter or over-zealous, gun-confiscating New Jersey cops like during Katrina). If training is the issue, then perhaps the state should consider funding public shooting ranges so that the general public can train with their firearms. The National Guard could manage them and provide range masters accordingly.