To say gun registries are upsetting to Second Amendment advocates is kind of like saying Rep. Jasmine Crockett has a bit of a potty mouth. I mean, it’s not necessarily wrong, just a massive understatement.
While some states have a registry that everyone knows about, other states ban them.
Florida, while having its Second Amendment problems, is one of those states that not only doesn’t have one but also doesn’t allow anyone else in the state to have one, either.
Unfortunately, it seems Jacksonville figured those rules didn’t apply to them, as they have now confirmed.
New developments are emerging Monday regarding a now-confirmed firearm registry maintained within the Jacksonville city government. Members of the City Council Rules Committee met earlier this afternoon to discuss the controversial discovery.
Last week, News4JAX confirmed that the original allegation came from a member of Florida Carry, a nonprofit organization that advocates for gun rights in Florida.
Eric Friday, who represents Florida Carry, spoke during public comment at the committee meeting.
“It is a felony to keep a list of gun owners in this state,” Friday said. “It is a felony to keep a list of guns they own. And this city was making those records at the entrances to our public buildings.”
…
The issue came to light last week when Councilman Nick Howland told News4JAX that records of gun owners were being kept at City Hall and the Yates Building without public knowledge. He referred to the registry as “illegal.”
“This is information that Jacksonville citizens need to know,” Howland said during the committee meeting.
Jacksonville could face a fine of up to $5 million for this.
The city council has hired a law firm to launch an independent investigation, which doesn’t exactly fill me with confidence. If the city is paying the bills, they’re the ones who are going to get the report, which they can spin however they want.
That said, they’ve confirmed its existence, and many members of the council are justifiably upset over it, as are a lot of Floridians.
And I know Eric Friday. He’s not going to just let this lie. When it comes to gun rights, he’s a True Believer, which means he’s going to be an absolute bulldog on this one.
The City of Jacksonville had better get its checkbook ready, at a minimum.
However, as Friday noted, this is a felony in the state of Florida. People don’t seem to be prosecuted for it that much, but that needs to start happening because the truth of the matter is that without personal penalties, some hapless dipstick is going to think he should try this at some point down the road.
I doubt that will happen, but that’s because I’m becoming more cynical in my old age.
Either way, the fact that this happened at all is still troubling. The fact that the City of Jacksonville started keeping records of people who were lawfully carrying firearms into city buildings–which they can legally do, mind you–is something that never should have happened. I fail to see how or why anyone thought this was a good idea or even remotely useful.
But they did, and they the need to pay.
Read the full article here
