Following the deadly school shooting Thursday, April 17, on Florida State University’s campus that resulted in the death of two people and multiple injuries, House Democratic Caucus leaders are calling for stricter gun legislation in Florida.
Democrats and their views on gun control
During a media availability on Monday, House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell, D-Tampa, condemned the Republican-controlled Legislature for not passing more rules to make guns and ammunition less obtainable.
“Democrats in our caucus file good common sense gun laws—reforms that will help to make our communities safer. Unfortunately, the Republican majority refuses to even give them a hearing," Driskell said.
Florida State students returned to campus for class just four days after a mass shooting occurred at the student union. Many stopped at the memorials around campus to pay their respects to the victims.
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"We can honor the Second Amendment while also doing what we can to prevent these needless, awful acts of violence."
Democrats in both chambers have filed bills this session to tighten the state’s grip on guns.
Rep. Christine Hunschofsky, D-Parkland, has a bill (HB 1019) awaiting its first hearing that aims to "regulate gun ownership by requiring background checks on all firearm sales." It also prohibits the sale of guns that don’t have a serial number.
Hunschofsky was Parkland’s mayor during the 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
“If you haven’t been through something like this, it’s very hard to understand the level of trauma that people who has been through this, are experiencing," Hunschofsky said.
"This is the time to make sure we have the resources we need but also making sure that in the future something like this doesn’t happen again.”
What about the Second Amendment?
Meanwhile, the Florida House in March passed a bill to lower the gun-purchasing age from 21 to 18. It’s a rollback from a law passed after the Parkland shooting.
The gun purchasing measure (HB 759) has seemingly stalled out in the Senate but Florida State Director for Gun Owners of America Luis Valdes hopes the bill will pass.
“Gun Owners of America is fired up to see the House pass House Bill 759, marking the third straight year in a row now that lawmakers have voted to repeal Florida’s unconstitutional under 21-gun purchase ban," Valdes told WFSU in March.
Florida gun laws
Gun advocates say increasing gun control doesn’t necessarily work to keep weapons out of the hands of criminals. Some say last week's shooting on FSU’s campus may be an example of that.
Currently in Florida, a person must be 21 or older to purchase a handgun. But Phoenix Ikner, the FSU gunman, was 20 years old.
Authorities say Ikner is the stepson of a Leon County Sheriff’s deputy and that one of the weapons used to carry out the attack belonged to his stepmother. Ikner had a "handgun and a shotgun with him at the time of the shooting," according to the Leon County Sheriff's Office.
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