Staff Reports
A spot of good news for some Hurricane Matthew evacuees: A law passed last year allows them to carry concealed weapons or firearms without a permit to do so.
The law allows concealed weapons “while in the act of complying” with a mandatory evacuation order issued during a state of emergency declared by the governor or by local authorities.
It defines “complying” as the “immediate and urgent movement … away from the evacuation zone” within 48 hours of the evacuation order. It provides that the 48-hour period can be extended by the governor.
Florida statutes allow unlicensed people to carry concealed weapons so long as the weapons are used for defensive purposes and are either a chemical spray, a nonlethal stun gun, a dart-firing stun gun, or some other nonlethal electric weapon.
Otherwise, carrying a concealed weapon without a permit is a third-degree felony.
State Sen. Jeff Brandes, a St. Petersburg Republican, had filed an earlier version of the law in 2014 but it did not pass. Opponents feared it would foster vigilante-type behavior among groups of armed individuals during stressful emergencies.
