Police, sheriff groups back tighter restrictions on state's gun laws

[ceetee]

But NRA against denying licenses to those who take some plea deals

By Megan O'Matz
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Posted February 16 2007


Three major Florida law enforcement groups have joined a growing list of voices advocating changes to the state's gun laws to prevent criminals from legally carrying handguns.

Leaders of the Florida Sheriffs Association, the Florida Fraternal Order of Police, and the Florida Police Chiefs Association told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel this week that they will support efforts to tighten eligibility rules for concealed weapon licenses.



..."You've got some horrendous examples in your story that should not be tolerated," said Leon County Sheriff Larry Campbell, president of the Florida Sheriffs Association...



..."We do not participate in legislation that gratuitously takes away the rights of people, because when you begin taking away the rights of people that you don't like, that's the slippery slope," said Florida NRA lobbyist Marion P. Hammer...



..."When people plead guilty or no contest in these cases frequently, very frequently, these are people who have not committed any crime, but their lawyer advises them to take a plea bargain," Hammer said.

Campbell called the distinction "strictly semantics."

"If you shot someone with a gun ... and pleaded guilty or nolo [no contest], you are a criminal," he said....

I've said for years, "Thank goodness for Marion Hammer."

One potentially bright light in the story:

Attorney General Bill McCollum, the state government's top prosecutor, said this week that his office will look into the licensing rules and determine whether "corrective measures may be needed." Certain crimes, he said, may need to be made disqualifiers.

But McCollum, a former Republican congressman with a record of supporting the NRA, said he was not prepared to endorse a blanket ban on concealed weapon licenses for people who have had convictions withheld on any felony. "They've not been found guilty of a crime," he said.

Link to whole story

 

[pacodelahoya]

Yeah, but it's just the politicians in the police organizations, not the rank and file.

 

[Steve499]

Police "leaders" aren't the ones they should quote. They became leaders, in my experience, by always saying and doing what the next higher echelon wants them to say or do. They often have fluid values. The ones who should be quoted are the actual guys doing the job.Of course it'll never happen.

Steve

 

[gyp_c2]

hmmm...

...I guess that's always been the problem with something that's "given"...
It can always be taken away...
I wonder if they'll start changing the wording or labeling to something more palatable...sheesh...

 

[PedalBiker]

And Plumbers probably would support restrictions on wrench sales to the public, and surgeons really don't like people buying ether or scalpels. So we want to go back to the feudal Guild and serf days?

What makes police so immune to self interested policies, especially the "leadership"?

As an engineer there are all kinds of laws I can imagine making. Everyone should be required to be able to fully explain and calculate momentum and kinetic energy before they can buy a car or operate heavy machinery. How come no one vererates the opinion of engineers? We have nothing but the best interest of society in mind after all.

 

[geekWithA.45]

And so, the newspaper hit piece bears fruit.

 

[lance22]

They are in spin control

That so-called press story about how many felons or whatever have permits has thrown all the fear-mongers into frenzy. Never mind if the research was shoddy, if we are dealing with people who have the same name as a criminal, that there may be a reason why there was no arrest / conviction or whatever.

So I can understand, the misrepresentatives and politicos desperately want to appear like they are "doing something about it". But, if the state is performing inadequet background checks so that unqualified applicants are getting through, how is that the fault of the permit holder? And how does that justify "more restrictions" if they are boffing the one's they already have?

What I find most interesting, is if we were dealing with Marijuana or Illegal Immigration, the same people would take the opposite role and insist that the publishing of names is an invasion of privacy. They would be in courts suing everybody. Those things which are illlegal they seek to protect, while carry being LEGAL they want it prosecute.

 

[MJZZZ]

That's a kicker with the Kansas CCW law, if you've been granted any type of diversion for a felony. You might as well have been convicted. Mike Z

 

[Smurfslayer]

Turn it around with a "you first" provision.

Require standards of actual duty time for LE to actually carry a firearm. Desk duty doesn't count. No sense paying for a top heavy group with high overhead to enforce the laws, get them out on the street or have them turn in their guns.

 

[Autolycus]

Originally posted by Lance22:
What I find most interesting, is if we were dealing with Marijuana or Illegal Immigration, the same people would take the opposite role and insist that the publishing of names is an invasion of privacy. They would be in courts suing everybody. Those things which are illlegal they seek to protect, while carry being LEGAL they want it prosecute.

Got any facts to back that up? If so please provide them as well as the source.

 

[Art Eatman]

Stick with the deal in Florida, okay? This ain't about SweetGrass.

Florida does have some problems in how they deal with their definitions and in their record keeping.

SOME judges have sealed SOME court records in cases where violence was at issue. It's that sort of thing that is what was reported on in the original newspaper article.

It sounds like wants to separate violent from non-violent, and use some time to think about possible solutions to areas where there may be real problems.

And face it: The reporter generalized police officials' comments which most likely ranged from near-anti-gun to non-committal.

FWIW, Leon County is not a hotbed of conservatism. Tallahassee. FSU. State Capitol. Sheriffs are political animals as well as LEOs.

Art

 

[Jeff White]

Smurfslayer said;

Turn it around with a "you first" provision.

Require standards of actual duty time for LE to actually carry a firearm. Desk duty doesn't count. No sense paying for a top heavy group with high overhead to enforce the laws, get them out on the street or have them turn in their guns.

What makes you think these desk bound administrators carry guns? Let me tell you from experience, in most cases the higher up in rank they get, the less chance there is that they'll carry a firearm. A PDA and a Blackberry, yes, a firearm, cuffs or any other tool of a working cop...not likely....

Jeff

 

[ceetee]

I found it pretty disingenuous how they made the leap from "Look at how these .035% of license holders slipped through the cracks" to "We need tighter restrictions on eligibility for CCW"... I mean, in order to get the license, you have to have your background checked exhaustively. They have to resolve any "same name" issues, and no, leaving your SSN off the form is NOT an option.

Instead of saying we have reporting problems in the courts, they make it seem like all CCW'ers are loose cannons, ready to commit felonies at the drop of a hat. C'mon... that's ME they're talking about. All the crap I've been through in my life, and I haven't committed any felonies yet. If I ain't already a felon, I ain't about to become one now...

 

[CDignition]

I don't think there is anything to worry about In Florida about the CCW permitting process....1400 people out of 400,000 Plus is statistically insignificant, and they know it.

In Florida, sheriff is an elected position, and is all about politics, in all counties, not just the ones specified above.

 

[thexrayboy]

1400 out of 400,000 or approx 1/3rd of 1%. A miniscule amount that statistically is too small to be considered important. Wonder what % of the police in Miami Dade have criminal backgrounds. What % of the lawmakers elected to Tallahassee have criminal backgrounds. Lets start asking the tough questions and making the politicoes squirm when asked to explain a few other statistics.

 

[k_dawg]

From what I gather, most of these are cases where the person was NOT legally found guilty of a felony crime.

Blame the judges who allow this to happen. The CWP laws are fine.

 

[hammer4nc]

1. Couldn't this be remedied simply by fixing sloppy bookkeeping? Why is a new law needed?

2. Example #479, disproving the myth: "Don't blame the police, they don't make the law!"