Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis voiced his support for open carry and to repeal red flag laws.
“We see other states that have laws that respect that (open carry),” DeSantis said.
“I’m for it, I’ve always been for it,” he added.
DeSantis called red flag laws a “due process violation.”
“The burden shifts, where you have to prove to a court you are not a menace or a threat,” he said.
“That’s not the way due process works,” he added.
DeSantis said Florida has “lagged” on 2nd Amendment issues, despite saying it’s “the free state.”
“Open carry and red flag *repeal*,” the Republican governor said on X.
WATCH:
Open carry and red flag *repeal* https://t.co/0NTPTmQZ8U
— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) March 4, 2025
Per Florida’s Voice:
Gov. Ron DeSantis expressed his support for a flurry of pro-2nd Amendment proposals at the start of the 2025 Legislative Session on Tuesday.
Speaking to a gaggle of reporters, DeSantis rattled off his support for repealing Florida’s existing red flag laws, passing open carry and allowing young adults under 21 from purchasing rifles.
Florida statutes allow a court to order the temporary seizure of someone’s firearms if they are deemed an imminent danger.
The governor criticized those laws, calling it a violation of due process.
“You can go in and say, ‘this person’s a danger, they should have their firearms taken away…’ then the burden shifts, where you have to prove to a court you are not a menace or a threat. That’s not the way due process works,” he said. “I think it’s a huge due process violation.”
The governor noted that Florida approved permitless carry a couple years ago, which allows Floridians to legally carry a concealed firearm without a government permit – but he wants open carry as well.
Such a measure would make it legal for gunowners to carry firearms in the open.
“I’ve always been for it. If you talk to most gun owners – very few will actually open carry,” DeSantis said. “They just want to know they can, it’s a constitutional right. I’m for open carry.”
DESANTIS TO LEGISLATURE: Repeal red flag laws, pass open carry, lower firearm purchase age to 18https://t.co/9lMbCpQPe8
— Florida’s Voice (@FLVoiceNews) March 6, 2025
GUN LAW CHANGES? 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. https://t.co/5M4faX6w01
— WPLG Local 10 News (@WPLGLocal10) March 6, 2025
From the Tampa Bay Times:
Florida’s red flag law, known formally as risk protection orders, allows courts to temporarily require that someone surrender their firearms if they pose a danger to themselves or others.
Twenty-one states have some version of a red flag law, according to Everytown for Gun Safety.
In Florida, only law enforcement officials can petition the court for a risk protection order.
The petition needs to detail the types of firearms and ammunition a person owns and where they keep them as well as an affidavit with specific facts about why the officer has reasonable fear someone will be a danger.
That can include information about whether someone is seriously mentally ill, has been convicted of domestic violence, has abused controlled substances or made violent threats.
A civil court must hold a hearing within 14 days to hear evidence and decide whether to issue the risk protection order for up to a year. A person can choose to retain an attorney for the hearing.
Law enforcement can also ask for a temporary risk protection order ahead of the hearing if someone poses “a significant danger of causing personal injury to himself or herself or others in the near future.”
The state statute governing red flag laws has not been changed or amended since its passage in 2018.
