TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Gov. Ron DeSantis is pushing to roll back key provisions of Florida’s gun laws, including reversing red flag laws and lowering the minimum age to purchase a long gun from 21 to 18.
Speaking during his State of the State address, DeSantis said, “Look back in instances where legislation may have been passed in recent years.”
The proposed changes would undo parts of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Public Safety Act, a landmark law enacted in March 2018 after the Parkland school massacre.
The law, passed by a deeply conservative legislature and signed by then-Gov. Rick Scott, included gun restrictions and red flag laws that have been used 15,000 times to temporarily remove weapons from individuals deemed an immediate danger.
“We worked a lot — the legislators — both sides of the aisle. They compromised and settled on things they could live with,” said Broward County School Board Chair Debbi Hixon, whose husband, Chris Hixon, was killed in the 2018 MSD mass shooting. She was later elected to the Broward County School Board as part of her advocacy for safer schools.
Other Parkland parents voiced their opposition to reversing the law.
Lori Alhadeff, whose daughter Alyssa was killed in the 2018 MSD shooting, and Tony Montalto, who founded Stand With Parkland after his daughter Gina was killed in the same shooting, texted Local 10 News from Tallahassee that the state “got it right. Those pragmatic laws have helped to keep students and teachers safe throughout our state.”
However, Ryan Petty, whose daughter Alaina was also killed in the same shooting, has shifted his stance on red flag laws.
“I’ve had a change of heart, if you will, as I’ve learned more,” said Petty, who serves on the MSD Public Safety Commission. “I think we have a better handle on what’s going on, particularly in the realm of protecting Florida schools.”
