© 2024 All Rights reserved WUSF
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
LIVE BLOG: Updates on Hurricane Milton
Get the latest coverage of the 2023 Florida legislative session in Tallahassee from our coverage partners and WUSF.

Florida's police chiefs back a proposal for permitless gun carry

The Florida Police Chiefs Association on Monday supported proposals that would allow people to carry firearms without concealed-weapons licenses, joining the Florida Sheriffs Association in backing the legislation.
vzwer/Getty Images
/
iStockphoto
The Florida Police Chiefs Association on Monday supported proposals that would allow people to carry firearms without concealed-weapons licenses, joining the Florida Sheriffs Association in backing the legislation.

They say proper training in handling and storing a gun is more crucial to gun safety than carrying a permit.

The Florida Police Chiefs Association on Monday supported proposals that would allow people to carry firearms without concealed-weapons licenses, joining the Florida Sheriffs Association in backing the legislation.

“Responsible gun ownership doesn’t begin with the issuance of a government permit,” Fellsmere Police Chief Keith Touchberry, president of the police chiefs association, said in a prepared statement.

“It begins with training in how to safely handle, carry, use and store a weapon, and it continues with maintaining those competencies while complying with all applicable local, state and federal laws and regulations. Ultimately, gun safety means that a lawful gun owner who meets the statutory requirements for a concealed weapons permit, whether obtaining one or not, can protect themselves while not compromising the safety of their family, the community, or law enforcement.”

Bills filed in the House and Senate (HB 543 and SB 150) would eliminate a requirement that people get state concealed-weapons licenses to carry guns — a proposed change that supporters call “constitutional carry.”

The bills are filed for consideration during the legislative session that will start March 7.

While the groups of police chiefs and sheriffs have backed the bills, the Giffords gun-control group issued a statement Monday that criticized the legislation and pointed to Tuesday’s fifth anniversary of the shooting at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School that killed 17 people.

“This ‘no questions asked’ permitless carry bill will endanger Florida’s children,” former U.S. Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, a Giffords Florida senior adviser, said in a prepared statement. “We must come together and make our voices heard.”

You Count on Us, We Count on You: Donate to WUSF to support free, accessible journalism for yourself and the community.