University of Florida students rally for stronger gun laws after deadly school shooting
The Brief
The University of Florida's chapter of Students Demand Action hosted a vigil on Wednesday for those killed or hurt in the Florida State University shooting.
Attendees at the vigil expressed support for stricter gun laws and against House Bill 759, which seeks to lower the minimum age to purchase a firearm in Florida.
Two people were killed, and seven others were injured, when the alleged gunman opened fire on April 17 on FSU's campus. The suspected shooter was shot once in the jaw by law enforcement and remains in the hospital. Several of those hurt in the shooting have been released from the hospital.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - The University of Florida's chapter of Students Demand Action hosted a vigil and rally on Wednesday for those killed and hurt in the Florida State University shooting, and demanded action for stricter gun laws.
Two people were killed, and seven others were hurt in the April 17 shooting, officials said. Six of those were shot and one was hurt running away.
Phoenix Ikner, the 20-year-old suspected shooter – an FSU student and son of a Leon County Sheriff's Office deputy – remains hospitalized after law enforcement shot him once in the jaw, Tallahassee Police said Wednesday.
The backstory
2 dead, 5 hurt; suspect identified as FSU student, son of Leon County deputy
FSU shooting timeline: Shooting rampage over in 5 minutes, police say
Funeral set for Tiru Chabba
Five people hurt in FSU shooting released from the hospital
What we know about the victims in the FSU shooting
What we know about the suspect in the FSU shooting
FSU shooting victim played dead as gunman reloaded: Report
What we know
Between 20 and 25 people, including members of Students Demand Action, UF College Democrats, Moms Demand Action, and Gainesville Mayor Harvey Ward, marched with shirts and signs near UF's campus on Wednesday.
It comes less than a week after the shooting near FSU's Student Union.
"We wanted to make sure that students at the University of Florida, and across the state of Florida, know that this is not an issue that they're alone in," one student said. "This is such an important issue that impacts all of us in one way, shape or form," said Connor Efrain, who said he texted several of his friends at FSU the moment he heard about the shooting.
"The fact that we have to keep doing this, and the fact that this keeps happening, is a failure," one student said.
Dig deeper
Those at the rally talked about their views on gun laws and against House Bill 759, which could lower the minimum age to purchase a firearm in Florida from 21 to 18 – a reversal of reforms passed after the Parkland shooting.
They also called for secure storage laws, red flag laws and universal background checks.
The backstory
Police said the shooting at FSU was over in less than five minutes, leaving two people dead, seven people hurt, hundreds scrambling for safety, and the alleged suspect being challenged, shot, and taken into custody.
On Tuesday – four days after the shooting – Tallahassee Memorial Hospital announced that five of the six victims in the shooting had been released. At the time, it was not clear if the other person was someone hurt in the shooting or the suspected shooter.
On Wednesday, Tallahassee Police confirmed that the suspected shooter remains hospitalized with significant injuries, but that he is expected to survive. Police confirmed that the suspect was shot once in the jaw by law enforcement after he refused their commands during the shooting.
Police said the alleged suspect would have to be cleared and released from the hospital before being arrested and booked into jail. It is also unclear what charges the suspect may face. That will be up to state prosecutors to determine.
In Florida, only a grand jury can return a first-degree murder indictment against a suspect.
STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 35 ORLANDO:
Download the FOX Local app for breaking news alerts, the latest news headlines
Download the FOX 35 Storm Team Weather app for weather alerts & radar
Sign up for FOX 35's daily newsletter for the latest morning headlines
FOX Local:Stream FOX 35 newscasts, FOX 35 News+, Central Florida Eats on your smart TV
The Source
This story was written based on reporting from FOX 35's Caroline Coles who attended the rally at FSU; an update from the Tallahassee Police Department; and previous reporting from FOX 35 on the April 17 shooting at FSU. Previous information released by the Tallahassee Police Department, Tallahassee Memorial Hospital, and Leon County Sheriff's Office.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Yahoo
Truckling to MAGA ended in humiliation for Santa Ono
Century Tower on the Gainesville campus of the University of Florida. (Photo by Jay Waagmeester/Florida Phoenix) A few days ago, the University of Florida was all ready to welcome a brand-new president. They'd gotten rid of the useless (yet expensive) Ben Sasse and chosen a single finalist, a scientist called Santa Ono, former head of the University of Michigan. The trustees liked him; Ron DeSantis liked him, especially since Ono, who was once all-in on diversity at UM, recently pulled a 180, loudly recanting his climate change-admitting, student protest-allowing progressive ways and parroting the governor's War on Woke nonsense like a DeSantis Bot. It wasn't enough: The state university Board of Governors refused to give him the job. Poor old weathervane Ono fell victim to a nasty social media campaign against him, led by such intellectual giants as Don Trump Jr., who squawked 'WTF!' on the twixter; New College trustee Christopher 'They're eating the cats!' Rufo; Sen. Rick Scott; and the congenitally absurd Rep. Byron Donalds, who allowed as how while he didn't know Ono, the man didn't sound like he 'comported with the values of the state of Florida.' Au contraire, congressman. Given that Ono was prepared to abandon the principles of free speech, inclusion, and academic independence, I'd say he perfectly comports with the values of the state of Florida. Especially when it comes to higher education. DeSantis and his UF allies may have lost the Ono battle (more on the politics involved later), but he's committed to the larger war: Florida may soon be celebrated in the MAGA-sphere as the first state to lay waste to its universities. The full-scale assault started in 2023, when DeSantis wrecked New College and took to installing ideologically aligned hacks as presidents and appointing university boards so bent on destruction they'd shame a Visigoth. Former politico Richard Corcoran was not educationally, temperamentally, or administratively qualified to be president of the state honors college, yet there he is, DeSantis' boy, drawing a huge salary and inviting accused rapists to speak on campus in Sarasota. FIU and FAU got landed with dead-enders former Lt. Gov. Jeannette Nuñez and Republican state Rep.-turned private prison company vice president Adam Hasner. Now the governor has turned his lizardy eye upon the universities of West Florida and Florida A&M with a view to undermining academic freedom, student opportunity, and scholarly rigor. DeSantis, who loves to call Florida 'free,' doesn't want institutions of higher education to be free: He wants them cowed, cramped, and compliant. In April, DeSantis claimed — with no evidence, mind — UWF was some kind of 'indoctrination camp' run by 'Marxist professors' and warned those crazy Pensacola lefties to 'buckle up.' Big changes were coming. To that end, he appointed a noisome bouquet of trustees, several proudly hostile to book-learning. Three of them were either rejected by the Florida Senate or else slunk off before they could be officially sent packing. Adam Kissel, a fellow at the Heritage Foundation and one of the discarded candidates, seemed puzzled by the snub. In an interview with UWF's newspaper 'The Voyager,' he claimed he'd been brought down by a 'disinformation narrative' partially based on his comments lamenting the GI Bill's negative effect on American society. That would be the GI Bill that has enabled millions of veterans to get a college degree and join the middle class. Kissel also complained about the general milieu in blood red Escambia County, claiming, 'Cancel culture is still alive in Pensacola.' After these embarrassing rebuffs, you might think DeSantis might rethink his approach but, of course, you'd be wrong. His newest trustee pick, another Heritage Foundation luminary, pitched a hissy fit about UWF students putting on a Halloween drag show in 2019. (Halloween — you know, when people dress up in all sorts of outlandish ways?) Zack Smith, a Pensacola native and former assistant U.S. attorney in the Northern District of Florida, told UWF's then-president Martha Saunders he had 'concerns' (most of which seem to involve gay people asserting equal rights or Black people calling out systemic racism in America), including such outré actions as inviting one of the founders of Black Lives Matter to speak on campus (she's an 'avowed Marxist'!) as well as the UWF librarian suggesting Ibram X. Kendi's 'How to Be an Antiracist' as a good read for Black History Month. God forbid students might encounter a critique of capitalism or an important and provocative exploration of race during Black History Month. Pro tips for Project 2025 zealots: Capitalism is not beyond criticism. I refer Heritage True Believers to Mark 10:25 (the camel/rich man/eye-of-needle thing) and Matthew 6:24 (the God and Mammon thing) as well as analyses of our economic system, many written by those embedded in it. Marxism is a political philosophy. Like any other philosophy, it should be studied in universities. Merely hearing about it does not rot your very soul. Ibram X. Kendi is a distinguished scholar, a graduate of Florida A&M University who has gone on to win a National Book Award and a MacArthur Fellowship. Reading his work will not infect you with the Woke Mind Virus. But — agree or disagree with what Kendi says — his book might make you think. Imagine that: college students thinking. Eye-wateringly stupid as Smith's complaints were, they had the intended effect: Martha Saunders resigned, allowing DeSantis to put his education commissioner in as interim president. The irredeemably unimpressive Manny Diaz Jr. has no higher ed experience, no terminal degree, and no business running what was, under presidents such as Judy Bense, a highly regarded archeologist, and Martha Saunders, an expert in communications theory, a university on its way up. Unfortunately for UWF, odds are Diaz gets the permanent gig: That's what happened at New College; that's what happened at FIU. DeSantis wants university presidents who realize they do not work for the institution, fostering knowledge, encouraging free inquiry, and serving education. He insists they work for him. They must do his bidding, battling villains such as faculty unions, student journalists, Pride Month celebrations, critical race theory, gender studies, and African American studies. Which brings us to FAMU. DeSantis and his higher ed henchpersons have, in the past, tread pretty carefully with Florida's only public HCBU. Maybe it's because FAMU is such a, well, let's call it a 'bargain.' In 2024-25, FAMU's enrollment was 9,980. New College's was 850. FAMU's appropriation was $50 million. New College got $52 million. Even those of us who went to school in Florida can do that math. Not that anyone should be surprised the state spends far more per student at predominantly white New College than at predominantly not-white FAMU. Can't be racism. Oh, no. Perish the thought. Even though on Planet DeSantis, the very existence of a majority-minority student body is DEI gone wild. At any rate, FAMU's no longer flying under the governor's radar. He just got to stick another of his favorites in the top job. The good part: FAMU's presidential search was unusually transparent, at least in comparison to the absurdly hermetic process at UF and other state institutions. The four finalists' names were publicly announced and students, faculty, and community members were invited to meet them. Three had solid-to-excellent qualifications. Contenders included the provost and vice president for academic affairs at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, the senior vice president for administration and finance at the University of Central Florida, and FAMU's own senior vice president and COO. The not-so-good part: Candidate Number Four. Marva Johnson appeared almost out of nowhere, rumored to be a late addition pushed by trustee Deveron Gibbons, a DeSantis appointee. As you'd expect, she has no higher education experience, but she has far more important qualities: She's a telecom company executive, a MAGA Republican, and a crony of Ron DeSantis'. FAMU has long been a leader in the fight for civil rights and remains the nation's top public HCBU, alma mater of politicians like former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and U.S. Rep. Al Green, musicians Common and Cannonball Adderley, satirist Roy Wood Jr., Wimbledon champion Althea Gibson, and art collector Bernard Kinsey. Rattlers were horrified Johnson made the short list and held rallies protesting her candidacy. Movie producer, FAMU alum and big-time donor Will Packer said she might 'do irreparable harm to the university's relationship with its community and with its donor base.' Naturally, she got the job. And, like any self-respecting MAGA grifter, immediately demanded a salary of $750,000, nearly $300,000 a year higher than her predecessor. Of course, she won't make as much as the president of New College: He pulls in nearly a $1 million overseeing those 850 students. Taxpayers might wonder why, when legislators and the governor keep whining about the need to cut budgets and save money, there seems to be no problem paying a gaggle of under-qualified nonentities huge amounts to be university presidents. But universities in Florida and other MAGA-controlled states are no longer so much about education as they are about propaganda and power. Republicans want to control curriculum, censoring anything that upsets white folks — topics such as slavery, genocide, colonialism, gender, women's rights. You've seen how Trump is going after Harvard and other universities, cutting off funding, trying to control hiring and admissions, denying foreign students visas. Colleges in Utah, Ohio, Texas, Iowa, and (no surprise) Florida are being told to emphasize Western Civilization, the Constitution, and 'Great Books.' MAGAs might not like it if universities really focused on, say, the Constitution. Students might realize that the current regime regularly violates it. For Ron DeSantis, taming Florida's universities feeds his desperate need for relevance. Spurned by the voters during his disastrous presidential bid, ridiculed by onetime patron Donald Trump, defied by the Legislature, DeSantis figures at least he can run — or ruin — education. It's not quite as smooth a conquest as anticipated. The crash of Santa Ono's UF candidacy was about the Right's fear of DEI. But it was also about giving DeSantis a black eye. The crash of Santa Ono's UF candidacy was about the Right's fear of DEI — they truly do want to Make America White (and Christian and male-dominated) Again — and hysteria over hiring someone who, despite his pathetic attempts to demonstrate that he'd drunk the Trumpy Kool-Aid, clearly knew better. But it was also about giving DeSantis a black eye. Signs indicate Casey DeSantis will run for governor when her husband terms out. But she's got all kinds of political problems, not least an investigation into her dodgy charity, Hope Florida. Her husband is spewing spittle all over Tallahassee, accusing a 'jackass' in the Legislature (the rest of us know him as Rep. Alex Andrade) of taking documents which 'he dropped in a prosecutor's office,' and hollering 'that is not an organic investigation' and any accusation of money laundering is just a 'smear.' Then there's her likely primary opponent, Rep. Byron Donalds. He's been endorsed by Trump. It's no coincidence he led the MAGA campaign against Ono. Higher education has always been political. Governors and legislators have never approved of professors (liberals, mostly) or students (snotty-nosed kids protesting) or faculty (probably Marxists). But DeSantis has taken the politicization of universities to a whole new level of venality, pettiness, and dangerous repression. The 'Free State of Florida' isn't. As that famous novel (which could soon be on the banned books list) says: 'Freedom is slavery' and 'Ignorance is strength.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Fox News
8 hours ago
- Fox News
Florida stands up against woke mind virus and rejects leftist university president who promised 'DEI 2.0'
The defeat of Santa Ono, as the sole nominee to lead the University of Florida, is a success for Florida but also for the higher education system across the country. For a long time, our best universities fell like dominoes to the woke mind virus. Schools where rigor and merit were meant to flourish became institutions of identity politics and far-out leftism. They moved seamlessly from safe spaces to land acknowledgements to anti-Israel encampments. Education was an afterthought. Ono was the former University of Michigan president. For Michigan, he was considered a "moderate." A moderate in this case meant someone who promised, in his inauguration speech in 2023, to implement "DEI 2.0" and described racism as "one of America's original sins." In the strategy document for that DEI 2.0, the plan was to "emphasize DEI in terms of strategic priorities; build a campuswide effort; develop institutional and constituent capacity to implement and improve DEI initiatives; fully institutionalize DEI into the university; and ensure continued progress and long-term sustainability." In his previous role as president and vice-chancellor of the University of British Columbia, Ono made land acknowledgments and wrote an op-ed about the "systemic racial inequities" that "permeate the halls of academia." Ono clearly had a lifelong devotion to inserting leftist politics in his roles. After October 7, he said he would commit the University of Michigan to "a shared commitment to pluralism, to mutual respect and to freedom of speech and diversity of thought." That didn't happen. Radical anti-Israel protesters were able to frequently interrupt events with no repercussions and the free speech of those who disagreed with them went unprotected. Over the last few weeks, Ono had been on something of a rehabilitation tour. In an op-ed in early May, Ono wrote that he agreed "with the state leadership's vision and values for public higher education" and that, "Public universities have a responsibility to remain grounded in academic excellence, intellectual diversity and student achievement. That means rejecting ideological capture, upholding the rule of law, and creating a culture where rigorous thinking and open dialogue flourish." But just a month earlier, in April, Ono had signed an anti-Trump letter as the administration used pressure to force universities receiving public funds to curtail illegal activities on their campuses. Ono had his name scrubbed from the letter once he was being considered for the UF role. His flip-flop had been so sudden that it was impossible to trust. Of course, people develop and change over the course of their lives, and it's possible Ono has realized how damaging his past support for these far-left policies had been, but the recency of his conversion had given many pause. Success has many fathers, of course, and a number of people and organizations are rushing to take credit for knocking down the Ono pick. But the real credit goes to the Florida Board of Governors, the majority of whom were appointed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. It took guts to overturn the unanimous vote for Santa Ono of the University of Florida Board of Trustees and stand strong against someone who was seen as a prestigious choice for UF. The BoG final vote was 10–6 with one member abstaining. Several members of the Board of Governors asked excellent, probing questions of Ono, trying to get to the bottom of his beliefs. Vice Chair of the Board of Governors Alan Levine, in particular, asked pointed questions about Ono's lack of response to the anti-Israel protests that had rocked the UM campus. Ono didn't have a great answer on why he took so little action to stop the encampments, the vandalism or the interruptions of events at UM. "Antisemitism will not rear its head again," Ono promised. Not at the University of Florida it won't.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Santa Ono barred from UF presidency amid mounting pressure from GOP officials
Santa Ono was barred from being the next president of the University of Florida amid rising dissent from leading Republicans who question whether he'd protect Jewish students in the preeminent state university. One thorny issue for Ono and many higher education leaders has been dealing with pro-Palestine encampments on campus: Protests generally are protected, but camping overnight or setting up structures can be subject to policies about safety and access, for example. And some Jewish students have reported feeling uneasy or even threatened because of encampments on campuses. UF's Board of Trustees approved Ono, president of the University of Michigan. Yet when facing the Board of Governors, a 17-member board that oversees the public university system, Ono was grilled the afternoon of June 3 over his handling of encampments in Michigan last year. UF Trustees vote: University of Florida Board of Trustees selects Dr. Santa Ono as university's 14th president U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, for instance, said in a statement prior to the failing vote that he was concerned over Ono's "concerning record" from allowing encampments for nearly a month, "putting Jewish students in danger and failing to uphold even the most basic standards of leadership. "This is the right decision for UF," Scott said in an X post after the vote. "UF's students, faculty and staff deserve a president who will stand for Florida values and against antisemitism." Ono's past support of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, which he has since walked back, also has gotten him crosswise with Florida GOP elected officials, including U.S. Rep. Jimmy Patronis, a Panhandle Republican who until recently was Florida's elected chief financial officer. "@UF sets the benchmark for education nationwide. There's too much smoke with Santa Ono. We need a leader, not a DEI acolyte. Leave the Ann Arbor thinking in Ann Arbor," Patronis posted June 2 on X. U.S. Rep. Greg Steube, R-Sarasota, wrote a letter to the board last week asking them to reject Ono and restart the presidential search, saying his past positions and policies in Michigan are disqualifying. "Hollow assurances of an 'evolved mindset' cannot erase Dr. Ono's history of preferential treatment for far-left causes, coupled with his cold indifference to student safety," Steube said in a press statement Friday. U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Naples, also questioned Ono's capability in a thread on X prior to the vote, saying, "Now more than ever, Floridians deserve answers." "How can the UF community be assured you'll be realistic about the prominence of anti-Semitism on college campuses, shut down protests, and keep public order?" asked Donalds, so far the only leading Republican to declare his candidacy for the 2026 Florida governor's race. More recently, Ono's handling of encampments and pro-Palestine demonstrations while leading the University of Michigan was specifically questioned. Ono has explained that resources available to him at the time were not enough to manage the situation and he wanted to ensure encampments would not affect the university graduation ceremonies, which is why it took 30 days to break them up. "It's just not acceptable," Ono said to the Board of Trustees, discussing encampments. In 2024, nine pro-Palestine protesters were arrested at the University of Florida, including many students. They argued they were exercising their First Amendment rights. UF released guidance that students are free to hold signs and engage in speech but not allowed to break rules against camping and violence. Pro-Palestine UF Protests: Controversy: UF may trespass protestors engaging in prohibited activities In his meeting with trustees, Ono did not specify further what would qualify as an encampment, what resources he would need to break one up if needed, and whether it would infringe on First Amendment rights to speech and assembly. Jerry Edwards, a staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida, said universities often are given special deference in court because of their educational mission. "The way (speech restrictions are) implemented may end up being unconstitutional. On its face, I cannot say that they're not able to put restrictions in place," Edwards said. And Gainesville-based First Amendment attorney Gary Edinger said universities certainly can create rules on encampments that do not violate freedom of assembly, as long as these rules are created and enforced neutrally. "Application in universities has often been problematic," Edinger said. "If our new president says no encampments, and it's done on a neutral basis, … I think that's going to survive a challenge." More: Who is the next president of UF? What we know about finalist Dr. Santa Ono This reporting content is supported by a partnership with Freedom Forum and Journalism Funding Partners. USA Today Network-Florida First Amendment reporter Stephany Matat is based in Tallahassee, Fla. She can be reached at SMatat@ On X: @stephanymatat. This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Santa Ono barred from UF presidency after Florida Republicans called for no-vote
