Fla. governor signs new laws on guns 3 weeks after attack
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Gov. Rick Scott signed a far- reaching school-safety bill Friday that places new restrictions on guns, cementing his state’s break with the National Rifle Association and decades of Republican thinking on gun control in the aftermath of the Parkland high school attack.
Surrounded by family members of the 17 killed in the shooting just over three weeks ago, the Republican governor said the bill balances “our individual rights with need for public safety.”
“It’s an example to the entire country that government can and has moved fast,” said Scott, whose state has been ruled for 20 years by gun-friendly Republican lawmakers.
Tony Montalto, whose daughter Gina was killed in the attack, read a statement from victims’ families: “When it comes to preventing future acts of horrific school violence, this is the beginning of the journey. We have paid a terrible price for this progress.”
The bill is less than what many survivors had sought.
It raises the minimum age to buy rifles from 18 to 21, extends a three-day waiting period for handgun purchases to include long guns and bans bumpstocks, which allow guns to mimic fully automatic fire.
It also creates a guardian program enabling some teachers and other school employees to carry guns.
Hours after the government’s signature, the NRA filed a federal lawsuit over the new law and insisted the measure “punishes law-abiding gun owners for the criminal acts of a deranged individual.”
The Parkland gunman “gave repeated warning signs that were ignored by federal and state officials. If we want to prevent future atrocities, we must look for solutions that keep guns out of the hands of those who are a danger to themselves or others, while protecting the rights of lawabiding Americans,” Chris Cox, executive director of the NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action, said in a statement.
The signing marked a major victory for the teens from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School who lived through the attack and became the public faces of a renewed gun- control movement.
Just days after the shooting, they began holding rallies, lobbying lawmakers and using social media in support of reform.
The governor told the students: “You helped change our state. You made a difference.”
Andrew Pollack, whose daughter Meadow died, called it “a start for us.”
“Let’s get the rest of the country to follow our lead, and let’s make schools safe,” Pollack said.
Student activists from the attacked school called it “a baby step.”
“Obviously, this is what we’ve been fighting for. It’s nowhere near the longterm solution,” said Chris Grady, a senior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High.
The 19-year-old former student accused of opening fire at the school made his initial appearance Friday before a judge. Nikolas Cruz faces 17 counts of murder and attempted murder. In the brief hearing, Cruz stood with his head bowed as he appeared via video conference.
Cruz’s public defender has said he will plead guilty if prosecutors take the death penalty off the table and sentence him to life in prison instead.