‘Dangerous new direction:’ Group condemns new Florida permitless carry gun law

DeSantis signed new law, which goes into effect July 1

Giffords Florida condemns new Florida permitless carry gun law (Copyright 2023 by WKMG ClickOrlando - All rights reserved.)

ORLANDO, Fla. – Giffords Florida, an organization aiming to end gun violence in America, held a news conference Wednesday discussing the new permitless carry gun bill signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier this week.

Former Congresswoman Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, who is part of the organization Giffords Florida, hosted the news conference in Orlando alongside former state lawmaker Carlos Guillermo Smith and Rep. Maxwell Frost. Orange County Sheriff John Mina was set to attend the news conference but did not make it due to an emergency.

Mucarsel-Powell called the new law “a recipe for disaster.”

“We already have too many violent encounters because of simple disagreements. Throwing more guns into the mix will only increase shootings and deaths by gunfire,” she said.

DeSantis on Monday signed HB 543 into law, which will allow Floridians to carry a concealed firearm without the need for a permit. The governor signed the bill alongside several state leaders and members of law enforcement, including Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey.

Under the new law, people can now carry concealed firearms without going through background screening and training that is currently required to have a concealed carry license. However, those carrying concealed guns must still have valid IDs with them.

Smith called out the governor for signing the bill “behind closed doors” and taking “Florida in a dangerous new direction.”

“He made a hard right turn and it signals a reversal of the progress that we have made as a state on gun violence prevention since Pulse and since Parkland. And it is a rescinding of the promise that this state made to those families impacted by gun violence that we would make gun violence prevention a priority in this state. Our promise to this community has not changed. These lives were not taken in vain,” he said.

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The bill passed the state Senate on Friday after the Republican super majority rejected an amendment to the bill earlier in the week requiring safe storage of firearms. The bill then went to the governor’s desk.

Mina appeared on Apple TV+ talk show “The Problem with Jon Stewart” to discuss the topic of permitless carry, saying there is no benefit to the community.

“It has become a political issue and somewhere along the lines we stopped listening to law enforcement, the men and women who patrol the streets every night at risk of their own lives,” Mina said in a clip shared on social media. “ Go ask the street cop what he or she thinks about encountering lots of people with a gun stuck in their waistband. It’s not gonna make our communities safer, it’s gonna make them more dangerous.”

The sheriff posted the clip in a tweet with the caption, “Permit-less carry will only make things more difficult for law enforcement.”


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About the Author:

Brenda Argueta is a digital journalist who joined ClickOrlando.com in March 2021. She is the author of the Central Florida Happenings newsletter that goes out every Thursday.

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