PA Bill Number: SB99
Title: In county boards of elections, further providing for expenses of county boards and of primaries and elections to be paid by county, expenses of ...
Description: In county boards of elections, further providing for expenses of county boards and of primaries and elections to be paid by county, expenses of ... ...
Last Action: Re-referred to APPROPRIATIONS
Last Action Date: May 8, 2024
McKeithen blasts vote on open carry :: 10/28/2015
Bay County Sheriff Frank McKeithen has come out against what he called a “secret ballot” vote taken by the Florida Sheriff's Association (FSA) in which a majority of members opposed legislative action to allow open carry of firearms.
Bay County Sheriff Frank McKeithen has come out against what he called a "secret ballot" vote taken by the Florida Sheriff's Association (FSA) in which a majority of members opposed legislative action to allow open carry of firearms.PANAMA CITY — Bay County Sheriff Frank McKeithen has come out against what he called a “secret ballot” vote taken by the Florida Sheriff’s Association (FSA) in which a majority of members opposed legislative action to allow open carry of firearms.
The controversial proposal (Senate Bill 300) would allow anyone with a Florida concealed-weapons permit to carry that weapon openly wherever they’re allowed to carry concealed weapons. As the bill proceeded through part of the Legislature last week, the FSA released results from a “blind vote” taken the weekend of Oct. 16. About 70 percent of Florida sheriffs were in opposition to the proposal, while only about 15 percent supported the legislation as written and the remaining members either abstained or were unavailable to cast a vote.
The results met the 60 percent threshold for the FSA to take a group stance on the issue. However, McKeithen said Tuesday during an interview with The News Herald that he disagreed with outcome of the vote and the manner in which the FSA conducted its survey of Florida’s sheriffs.
“This individual subject should be addressed by individual sheriffs and not be based on a group opinion,” McKeithen said. “If I vote on something as significant as this, people should know how I voted.”
McKeithen was one of the five sheriffs to abstain from the FSA’s vote. He said he abstained because the voting sheriffs would not be held accountable to their constituents. Otherwise, he said, he’s in favor of the concept of open carry.
Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, who is also the legislative committee chair of the FSA, said because of the timing with which the proposal is projected to come up in the legislative session, sheriffs were encouraged to call in and vote by phone and the results would be presented as the group opinion. Other than the tallies being taken by phone, the vote was typical of other decisions the FSA has conducted, he said.
“Every sheriff is welcome to speak to whoever they want to on what their feelings are or how they voted,” Gualtieri said. “They could be asked individually, and that is between the person asking the question and the sheriff responding. If the sheriff doesn’t want to answer, then that is something the sheriff could be probed about.”
McKeithen was not reticent on his stance.
Many of the sheriffs disagreed with the bill because of concerns with the concept of open carry, while others saw problems with the language of the law, Gualtieri said.
McKeithen said he was one who is in favor of the concept of open carry and that issues with the bill’s language could be dealt with over time. He said as an officer sworn to uphold the Constitution, open carry came down to supporting the Second Amendment.
“If a law-abiding citizen has a concealed carry permit and wants to openly carry, they should be able to do that,” McKeithen said. “… It makes them feel safe, and I have no problem with that if they follow the laws.”
Gualtieri also has been vocal about his opposition to the language within the law and the concept of open carry. He said the current concealed-carry law in Florida was “reasonable,” “safe” and Second Amendment issues have been accounted for in the existing law.
“This is not taking away the right of any of the 1.5 million Florida residents with concealed-carry permits,” Gualtieri said. “They can own their guns and they can carry them if they are concealed. By saying you can carry concealed but not open is not eliminating anybody’s right.”
One sticking point for proponents of open carry is the potential for legal penalties against people permitted to concealed carry who accidentally display their firearm in public. Gualtieri argued the state doesn’t have to change concealed carry to fix the loophole in the law.
Before reaching the Senate floor for an up-or-down vote, the bill still has to be vetted by two other legislative committees. Companion bills regarding where and how firearms will be permitted also are being considered in the House and face similar hurdles.
http://www.newsherald.com/article/20151027/NEWS/151029272/15751/NEWS
