Justices Weigh Challenge to Open-Carry Ban

[SecularMotion]

Law-abiding Floridians should be allowed to openly carry firearms in public, a gun-rights groups argued Wednesday to the Florida Supreme Court on behalf of a man arrested four years ago while strolling with a visibly holstered weapon in Fort Pierce.

Florida Carry attorney Eric Friday said the state's nearly 30-year-old concealed-weapons law violates the U.S. Constitution's Second Amendment, which he said requires people to be allowed to openly carry guns. Lawmakers this year considered a proposal to allow people with concealed-weapons licenses to openly carry firearms, but the bill did not pass.

"Quite frankly, the Legislature at this point has deprived citizens of the substantive right to bear arms," Friday said as some justices appeared skeptical of his argument.

Justices Barbara Pariente and Peggy Quince questioned how the current state law allowing citizens to receive concealed-weapons licenses to carry firearms suppresses gun ownership.

http://www.sunshinestatenews.com/story/justices-weigh-challenge-open-carry-ban