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HB 517 in House Judiciary Committee 3/24/2011 8am

StogieC

Campaign Veteran
Joined
Nov 22, 2009
Messages
745
Location
Florida
This is the last committee stop for HB 517 in the House before it goes to the floor.
 

StogieC

Campaign Veteran
Joined
Nov 22, 2009
Messages
745
Location
Florida
FLORIDA CARRY LEGISLATIVE ALERT



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - March 22, 2011

HB 517 - FL House Judiciary Committee
Hearing scheduled for 3/24/2011
HB 517 is on the agenda of the FL House Judiciary Committee on Thursday at 8:00am. Florida Carry, Inc urgently requests that you email via the members of the committee in support of House Bill 517.

This NRA authored bill comprises several separate initiatives. These include the option for CWFL holders to carry openly; a the right to store a firearm in one's vehicle wherever it may be lawfully parked; the authorization for the Department of Agriculture to take fingerprints; the repeal of Florida’s ban on long gun purchases in most other states. Quite simply put, this is the most comprehensive carry rights bill since shall-issue concealed carry was passed twenty-four years ago.

Florida is one of only seven states where open carry of firearms is generally forbidden, excepting under certain circumstances. Arguments against open carry generally consist of concerns regarding the fearful reactions of the general population. Some have suggested that an open carrier becomes an instant target, having his firearm snatched by a criminal in line at a convenience store. The facts simply do not support those allegations. In states where open carry is lawfully practiced, citizens have become accustomed to the understanding that a holstered weapon is a danger to no one. There have been no wholesale attacks on open carriers, nor have open carriers been shot with their own weapons. Police officers are not fearful of open carriers as they know that a 5-year FBI crime study has shown that criminals do not open carry, nor do they carry in holsters. Criminals shun attention, something that the open carrying of a firearm invariably draws to some extent. Not a single state that has legalized open carry in recent years has repealed the right.

In 1987, open carry was outlawed primarily because of the predictions of wild west shootouts, blood in the streets, gun battles over parking spaces, and normally law abiding people indiscriminately becoming homicidal maniacs. The main opponent of open carry was Janet Reno, then assistant state attorney. She was able to rally support from a vocal group of police administrators with the doom and gloom scenarios. Amazingly enough, the exact same arguments were heard against "shall-issue" concealed carry. Twenty-four years later, and none of the rampant bloodshed predictions about concealed carry have come true.

Florida Carry supports HB 517, and encourages all gun owners/carriers to join us in contacting the senators on the Florida House Criminal Justice Committee. Please tell them 24 years is enough.
We urgently need you to email the committee members NOW!
Include “Support HB 517” in the Subject Line

E-mail Helper (feel free to cut, paste, and edit to suit)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
TO:
william.snyder@myfloridahouse.gov,
charles.mcburney@myfloridahouse.gov,
ari.porth@myfloridahouse.gov,
dennis.baxley@myfloridahouse.gov,
daphne.campbell@myfloridahouse.gov,
eric.eisnaugle@myfloridahouse.gov,
matt.gaetz@myfloridahouse.gov,
tom.goodson@myfloridahouse.gov,
bill.hager@myfloridahouse.gov,
shawn.harrison@myfloridahouse.gov,
john.julien@myfloridahouse.gov,
larry.metz@myfloridahouse.gov,
kathleen.passidomo@myfloridahouse.gov,
ray.pilon@myfloridahouse.gov,
elaine.schwartz@myfloridahouse.gov,
darren.soto@myfloridahouse.gov,
richard.steinberg@myfloridahouse.gov,
greg.steube@myfloridahouse.gov,

SUBJECT:
Support HB 517 – Support the Second Amendment

Dear Representative,

This e-mail is to express my support for House Bill 517, Firearms. As a member of the Florida House Judiciary Committee, you will be hearing this bill on March 24th. I respectfully ask that you wholeheartedly support this bill.

The predictions of doom and gloom that preceded the adoption of "shall-issue" concealed carry have been proven to be fiction. For twenty-four years, Florida concealed weapons/firearms license holders have proven themselves to be responsible to the extreme. Since 1987, only 168 of nearly two-million licenses have been revoked due to misuse of firearms. It is time to recognize that responsibility by giving those licensees the option to carry their firearms in the manner that is most appropriate to their situation, openly or concealed. In the 43 states that permit some form of general open carry, not a single state has repealed that right.


Please support HB 517.
Respectfully yours,

<your name>
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
About: Florida Carry is a non-profit, non-partisan, grassroots organization dedicated to advancing the fundamental civil right of all Floridians to keep and bear arms for self defense as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article I Section 8 of the Florida Constitution. Florida Carry, Inc. was organized by a group of Florida gun rights activists in order to better coordinate activities, effectively lobby the state legislature, and to provide a legal entity capable of filing suit to demand compliance with state and federal law. Florida Carry stands only to represent our members and the over 6 million gun owners of Florida. We are not beholden to any national organization's agenda that may compromise that mission.
Florida Carry works tirelessly toward repealing and striking down ill-conceived gun control laws that have been proven to provide safe havens to criminals and be deadly to law abiding citizens.
 
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77zach

Regular Member
Joined
Feb 5, 2007
Messages
2,913
Location
Marion County, FL
What's up with SB 234? Hopefully they'll get around to it next week. And more importantly, I hope we have the votes. Hopefully the guy from Floridians to Stop Gun Violence will show up again so the RINO's won't want to be associated with him.
 

StogieC

Campaign Veteran
Joined
Nov 22, 2009
Messages
745
Location
Florida
Hopefully the guy from Floridians to Stop Gun Violence will show up again so the RINO's won't want to be associated with him.

That would be Art Hayhoe, yes he is an idiot.

[video=youtube;2WDJzVIy1hg]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WDJzVIy1hg[/video]
 

skk123

Regular Member
Joined
Mar 10, 2011
Messages
23
Location
Tampa bay, FL
That would be Art Hayhoe, yes he is an idiot.

[video=youtube;2WDJzVIy1hg]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WDJzVIy1hg[/video]

"i don't think we're gonna solve this today"

Seems to me Mr. Flasterstein did a good job of explaining the position of open carry and backed it up intelligently and coherently with statistics. Hayhoe just sat there bumbling on basically saying "nuh uh" back at him. It's pretty easy to see who won that debate, stupid anchors at bay news 9.
 

bobthegunslinger

Regular Member
Joined
Oct 24, 2010
Messages
27
Location
tampa,florida
"i don't think we're gonna solve this today"

Seems to me Mr. Flasterstein did a good job of explaining the position of open carry and backed it up intelligently and coherently with statistics. Hayhoe just sat there bumbling on basically saying "nuh uh" back at him. It's pretty easy to see who won that debate, stupid anchors at bay news 9.

i`am from tampa too!when did this view on bay news 9?thanks!
 

~*'Phoenix'*~

Regular Member
Joined
Feb 15, 2011
Messages
538
Location
Florida
Sent:

Dear Representative,

I write to you to express my support for HB517, coming before your Judiciary Committee tomorrow and plead for your support for this bill.

Floridians who have gotten Florida Concealed Weapon or Firearm Licenses have proven themselves to be exemplary law-abiding citizens, and have maintained the cleanest criminal records of any demographic, on par with law enforcement officials themselves. Only .00084% of licenses have ever been revoked due to misuse of a firearm, many of these instances were charges of 'brandishing' due to accidental exposure, something that should clearly not be a criminal offence. I ask you to help us most respectful, responsible citizens to carry our lawful firearms in a manner that most protects us from both violent criminals and ill-designed, poorly-worded laws. Permitting lawful open carry by licensees is the only effective way to prevent these inappropriate charges, and allow Florida residents the option to have their means of self-defense readily available. I do not believe there will be any overwhelming number of open carriers, and many like myself will primarily carry openly while hiking and boating, and in rural areas.

There is no major public outcry of fear of firearms, there is no blood in the streets, there are no parking lot shoot-outs after 24 years of lawfully and safely carried concealed firearms. There is no reason to believe that will change if they may be legally carried openly.

We chose to show the state of Florida that we want to carry firearms for lawful self defense by getting the license to do so.
We do not want to break any laws.
We only want the option to carry them openly, as 43 other states already allow.

Please vote favorably for this bill, so we may know that Florida agrees with our nation's Constitution, that "the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed."

Respectfully yours,
 

~*'Phoenix'*~

Regular Member
Joined
Feb 15, 2011
Messages
538
Location
Florida
What's up with SB 234? Hopefully they'll get around to it next week. And more importantly, I hope we have the votes. Hopefully the guy from Floridians to Stop Gun Violence will show up again so the RINO's won't want to be associated with him.

What's up with 234 indeed?
I'd love to practice my Italian cursing here:cuss:... but I'll resist the temptation and keep out of trouble:

Judiciary committee meets once a week, and it's not even on their announced agenda for next week (the 28th) yet...:uhoh:
I say give up and keep both eyes on 517:banana:, it WILL get to the senate floor before senate's own 234 does:banghead:.
 

77zach

Regular Member
Joined
Feb 5, 2007
Messages
2,913
Location
Marion County, FL
What's up with 234 indeed?
I'd love to practice my Italian cursing here:cuss:... but I'll resist the temptation and keep out of trouble:

Judiciary committee meets once a week, and it's not even on their announced agenda for next week (the 28th) yet...:uhoh:
I say give up and keep both eyes on 517:banana:, it WILL get to the senate floor before senate's own 234 does:banghead:.

That is disturbing. They may be trying to kill it. Who decides the schedule, the senate president or the chair of the committee?
 

~*'Phoenix'*~

Regular Member
Joined
Feb 15, 2011
Messages
538
Location
Florida
That is disturbing. They may be trying to kill it. Who decides the schedule, the senate president or the chair of the committee?

I'm not sure, probably the committee chair & co.
Good news is, once one of them gets to the floor, it just has to pass simple majority vote in both floors, no committees on the opposite side to deal with.
 

77zach

Regular Member
Joined
Feb 5, 2007
Messages
2,913
Location
Marion County, FL
I'm not sure, probably the committee chair & co.
Good news is, once one of them gets to the floor, it just has to pass simple majority vote in both floors, no committees on the opposite side to deal with.

I'll admit I hate government too much and am far too lazy to look it up but I'm pretty sure it has to go through all committees on both sides.
 

nigmalg

Regular Member
Joined
Nov 3, 2010
Messages
148
Location
Fort Lauderdale, FL
What's up with 234 indeed?
I'd love to practice my Italian cursing here:cuss:... but I'll resist the temptation and keep out of trouble:

Judiciary committee meets once a week, and it's not even on their announced agenda for next week (the 28th) yet...:uhoh:
I say give up and keep both eyes on 517:banana:, it WILL get to the senate floor before senate's own 234 does:banghead:.


I called the Chair's office yesterday, and they informed me that scheduling is done mostly with the Committee itself as a whole. I called the Committee this morning and they informed me that the Evers already sent a "request for hearing", and that they simply had a ton of bills to go through. They said it's definitely not going to be heard this Monday.

I can't tell if they're trying to kill it or not. The problem with the legislative process, is there's no way to know for sure until the session is over. It's all very behind the scenes.
 

maps761

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 7, 2011
Messages
44
Location
Florida
Judiciary Committee debating it now.

Just amended the bill to specify handguns only.
 
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