Another 'Big Gun' showdown at the 'OK Corral' in Tallahassee between the anti-Gun lobby and Second Amendment supporters could be just around the corner as Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, Rep. Dan Daley (D), and other stakeholders, have asked the Florida Supreme Court to hear the recently overturned legal case of the state’s firearm preemption law Gov. Ron DeSantis signed in 2019.
The law was challenged and defeated in a lower court, but that ruling was overturned by Florida’s First District Court of Appeals earlier this year.
After the Marjorie Stoneman Douglas school shooting on February 14, 2018, a group of municipalities took it upon themselves to ban the possession of certain weapons within their respective cities.
The move is seen as a way to ban “assault weapons” of all kinds, not just rifles like the one used to kill 17 students and teachers in Parkland.
Now Fried and company feel that the DeSantis-picked Supreme Court will reverse the Appellate court’s decision, as she calls the law “undemocratic” and that local leaders needed to be able to protect their citizens from the ongoing gun violence “crisis.”
“Florida has unfortunately seen gun violence up close and personal. Enough is enough. We need common-sense action like background checks, which we’ve done at my department, and it’s something we can easily work on together,” stated Fried. “It is time for the state to let local leaders do their jobs to keep our communities safe so we can stop this bleeding together.”
But the ruling affects the 2011 changes that created a variety of penalties for violating the preemption law. For example, under the 2011 law, local officials could face fines up to $5,000 and potential removal from office. Also, members of the public and organizations could receive damages up to $100,000 and attorney fees if they successfully sued local governments for violations.
If the Florida Supreme Court hears the case and rules either to uphold the lower court ruling or overturn it, Floridians could see an epic gun-grab fistfight between opposing sides.
A source familiar with the court process and gun rights supporter, says that if the Supreme Court decides to overturn the appellate decision, the gun lobby would take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Coral Springs Mayor Scott Brook, Vice Mayor Joshua Simmons, Commissioner Joy Carter, Commissioner Nancy Metayer, Coconut Creek Mayor Becky Tooley, Hallandale Beach Commissioner Sabrina Javellana, Lauderhill Commissioner Melissa P. Dunn, Parkland Commissioner Ken Cutler, and Coconut Creek Commissioner Jackie Railey, were all with Fried.
