22-05-2025
Byron Donalds says he supports repealing Florida's red-flag law
U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, a GOP candidate for Florida governor, wants to repeal the "red-flag" law.
Byron Donalds says 'job one' for him if elected governor of Florida next year would be the repeal two provisions of the gun-safety package passed by the Florida Legislature following the shooting massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in 2018.
However, so does Ron DeSantis, and the two measures in question — the state's 'red-flag' law and the ban on individuals under the age of 21 from purchasing a long gun — very much remain the law of the land in Florida.
Donalds appeared Thursday on the Bob Rose Show in Gainesville, where he was asked if he would push for Florida to legalize the open carrying of firearms, another idea the governor has said he supports but which the Legislature has not enacted.
'I would support and push for that, but I think that the bigger thing that we need to get done is really unwinding the red flag laws in our state,' Donalds said.
'When I was in the Legislature, the Marjory Stoneman Douglas bill came through the Legislature. I was a freshman at that time and I opposed that legislation. And I opposed it because I thought that red flag laws really did take away your Fifth Amendment rights as a citizen, and I also felt that there should not be a two-tier system for adults between the ages of 18 and 21.
'I felt that was wrong then, and I still feel that way, so I would tell you that making sure that those two provisions — those constitutional rights are actually restored will probably be job one.'
Formally known as risk-protection orders, the red flag law allows courts to order someone to surrender their firearms if they pose a threat to themselves or others. Former Panhandle Republican Joel Rudman filed a measure to repeal that law late last year, but he resigned to run for Congress in January, and his legislation was never picked up by any of his colleagues during this session.
SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
