Gun-control advocates blast Florida Attorney General for refusing to defend concealed carry law

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier asked an appeals court to uphold a teenager’s right to carry a concealed weapon even after a Broward judge last year declared the ban constitutional, all but handing another victory to gun-rights supporters who have tried to make it easier to buy and carry firearms in the Sunshine State.

Uthmeier’s office is legally responsible for representing the state in appeals, but in this case he is siding against state prosecutors who say the law is still on the books and should be enforced. The Broward State Attorney’s Office asked Uthmeier’s office for permission to defend the law in the Fourth District Court of Appeal, but the office denied the request, drawing criticism from gun-control advocates.

At issue is a 1987 law that blocks anyone between the ages of 18 and 21 from carrying a concealed firearm. The law has survived multiple reviews and reconsiderations of gun rights and gun control legislation.

Last October Broward Circuit Judge Frank Ledee dismissed the case against a teenager arrested for carrying a concealed handgun, a felony punishable by up to five years in prison. “Because the Second Amendment’s plain text applies to the concealed carry of firearms, Florida’s concealed carry ban, as applied to 18-to-20-year-olds, is unconstitutional,” the judge wrote in his ruling.

But months earlier, Judge Lorena Mastrarrigo upheld the same law in a similar case. Defense lawyers in that case appealed the ruling, and Uthmeier decided the state was wrong to prosecute the defendant, asking the appeals court to rule for the defendant.

In a written statement issued Monday, Broward State Attorney Harold Pryor said he disagreed with the attorney general and is seeking permission from the appeals court to file a “friend of the court” brief defending the law.

“Given the impact of gun crimes in the State of Florida — including the Feb. 14, 2018, mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland in our community, which resulted in the tragic murders of 17 children and adults and severe injuries to 17 individuals who survived — we respectfully disagree with the position taken by the Office of the Attorney General,” Pryor said.

Despite the Broward judge’s ruling, the law remains on the books, and Pryor said he will continue advocating for the law. Florida House Rep. Dan Daley criticized the attorney general for putting conservative political preferences above state law.

“While our appointed Attorney General might not be aware, he does not have the authority to abandon a state law simply because he disagrees with it,” Daley said. “I am calling on Governor DeSantis to intervene here. The Governor has previously removed duly elected state attorneys for far less — based solely on statements about enforcement discretion.”

DeSantis has shown no indication that he disagrees with Uthmeier or Ledee on gun rights.

“No single official should be able to decide which laws are worth defending, especially when those laws are designed to protect the public from gun violence,” said Fred Guttenberg, a gun-reform advocate and father of Jaime Guttenberg, who was murdered in the Stoneman Douglas shooting

“As a father who lost my daughter, Jaime, to gun violence, I am deeply disturbed by the Attorney General’s refusal to defend Florida’s concealed carry law for 18-to-21-year-olds. Laws like this exist to protect our communities and save lives,” Guttenberg said.

Rafael Olmeda can be reached at moc.leniitnesnus@ademlor or 954-356-4457.