Florida Court Strikes Down Statewide Ban on Open Carry of Firearms

The First District Court of Appeal of Florida declared on Wednesday that the state law prohibiting the open carry of firearms in public is unconstitutional. As a result, state authorities will now allow individuals to display their handguns openly on the street.

The court found the ban “incompatible” with the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees the right to bear arms. The ruling came in favor of Stanley Victor McDaniels, who had been arrested in 2022 after livestreaming himself on social media while carrying his pistol in downtown Pensacola.

“He argues that this prohibition on open carry is incompatible with the Second Amendment’s guarantee of the right to bear arms. Guided by the text of the Constitution and the nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation, we agree,” the Court stated in its resolution.

With this ruling, the statewide prohibition on openly carrying firearms in public “can no longer be constitutionally enforced,” said Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier. He welcomed the Court’s decision, noting that “the God-given right to self-defense is indispensable.”

Florida had been one of only four states—along with California, Connecticut, and Illinois—with near-total bans on the open display of firearms in public.

The decision comes just two days after Republican Governor Ron DeSantis urged the state legislature to pass a law permitting open carry in Florida, where more than one-third of the population, about 35 percent, owns a firearm, according to the specialized website Ammo.

“This decision aligns state policy with my already established position and with the vast majority of states,” the governor commented.

Earlier this week, DeSantis also launched a tax incentive program allowing residents to purchase firearms tax-free through the remainder of the year.

Efforts to repeal the ban had stalled in the state legislature, where Florida Senate President Ben Albritton, also a Republican, opposed the measure, citing the Florida Sheriffs Association’s objections.