The section of the Florida law prohibiting adults under age 21 from carrying a concealed firearm is unconstitutional, a Broward judge ruled Friday.
Effectively dismissing a case against a Fort Lauderdale resident who turns 20 in December, Broward Circuit Judge Frank Ledee said the restriction is inconsistent with the Second Amendment of the Constitution, which guarantees the right of the people to keep and bear arms, and with other Florida laws permitting both concealed and open carry of weapons. Ledee agreed with the defense argument that 18-year-olds are treated as adults in multiple legal settings, including the ability to vote, marry and serve in the armed forces.
“Because the Second Amendment’s plain text applies to the concealed carry of firearms, Florida’s concealed carry ban, as applied to eighteen-to-twenty year olds, is unconstitutional unless the State can affirmatively prove that the prohibition is consistent with this Nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation,” Ledee said, finding that the state had not met that burden in the case against Joel Andrew Walkes, 19, of Fort Lauderdale.
“It takes courage to put these questions before the court and for the court to consider them fairly,” said Public Defender Gordon Weekes, whose office defended Walkes. “This whole area of law around the Second Amendment is being developed. This is a valid question for us to address in court.”
Assistant Public Defender Thomas Cottone argued the Walkes’ position before Ledee.
The Broward State Attorney’s Office is reviewing the ruling and has not yet responded with a statement.
“Judges make rulings independent of politics and based on the law,” said defense lawyer Bill Gelin, who was in the courtrooom when the ruling was issued and posted it on the unofficial courthouse news and gossip site JAABlog. “He’s making a gutsy decision that could be unpopular in a true-blue county like Broward … [Ledee is] equally tough on the state and defense. He doesn’t play around; he calls it like he sees it.”
It was unclear Friday afternoon how far the ruling would extend. Both Weekes and Bob Jarvis, law professor at Nova Southeastern University, said the ruling applies only to the Walkes case for now. But both acknowledged the likelihood of an appeal to determine the issue or to settle conflicts of other judges who don’t agree with Ledee’s ruling.
Rafael Olmeda can be reached at rolmeda@sunsentinel.com or 954-356-4457. Follow him on Threads.net/@rafael.olmeda.
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