January 10, 2023 : Renzo Downey – FLORIDA POLITICS
Florida could be the first state to protect gun sale data with the Arms and Ammo Act.
Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson is unveiling his first legislative proposal since taking office, a first-in-the-nation measure to prevent businesses from tracking Floridians’ firearm and ammo purchases.
Simpson, the former Senate President who was sworn in as Agriculture Commissioner last week, announced his proposal for the “Florida Arms and Ammo Act” Tuesday.
The measure comes in response to new international standards for recording payment transactions last year that established a separate identification code for firearm and ammunition sales. With the new merchant category code, it is potentially easier to track people who have purchased guns or ammo.
“We are all blessed to live in the free state of Florida where our Second Amendment rights are valued and protected, but Democrats in Washington continue to try to chip away at these rights — and we must stay vigilant,” Simpson said.
“The ‘Florida Arms and Ammo Act’ draws a line in the sand and tells multi-national progressive financial institutions, and their allies in Washington, that they cannot covertly create a backdoor firearm registry of Floridians — or else.”
A Florida man has been arrested by deputies after twoconcealed carry permit holders stopped him from escaping by holding him at gunpoint after he allegedly shot two women.
Florida police say Lee David Wilkerson, 38, was standing outside the Bingo Paradise bingo hall in Pensacola, Fla., on Wednesday when two women tried to enter and an argument ensued, according to a Facebook post from the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
When Wilkerson tried to go back into the building, two citizens with concealed guns drew those guns and held him at the scene until police arrived.
Wilkerson allegedly pulled a gun from his side and hit one of the women in the head with it before firing in their direction as they tried to run away.
Wilkerson, who police say was carrying methamphetamine at the time, then allegedly threw his gun into a nearby dumpster.
Lee David Wilkerson, 38, was arrested after shooting two women outside a Florida bingo hall.
Authorities were able to locate Wilkerson’s gun in a nearby dumpster..
DATE: July 7, 2020 TO: USF & NRA Members and Friends FROM: Marion P. Hammer USF Executive Director NRA Past President
By Marion P. Hammer
Record numbers of firearms have been purchased over the past couple of months in Florida and around our nation. Many of the firearms were – and are – purchased by people who never thought they would want or need a gun. Firearms training classes are full and booked for months ahead. Florida Tax Collectors are reporting huge increases in the number of Concealed Weapon or Firearm License applications being processed locally.
Around the country, professional rioters and violent protesters have been destroying private property.
These acts of violence are soon followed by looters who help themselves to what’s left. These are not acts of civil disobedience; these are planned and orchestrated acts of domestic terrorism.
People around the nation are getting fed up and are buying guns, getting trained and are preparing to protect what they have worked hard to achieve.
We’ve seen people wake up and take responsibility for themselves and their property before.
In August 1992, Hurricane Andrew hit Miami/Dade County, Florida. The destruction was massive. During the news coverage in the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew, a warning from residents to looters emerged. Images flashed across TV screens on national TV and the message was clear. Hand scrawled on a piece of building debris: “You Loot – We Shoot!” Spray painted on garage doors: “You Loot – We Shoot!” Painted across the front of damaged homes: “You Loot – We Shoot!”
Hurricane Andrew had damaged and destroyed much of what Dade County residents owned, and they did not intend to lose anything else to looters and roving gangs.
Throughout the television coverage of the plight of hundreds of thousands of residents left homeless by – what at the time was – this nation’s worst hurricane disaster, we saw many people refusing to leave the rubble they once called home. They were armed and standing guard to protect what little they had left. There was even a report from Miami of a police officer on local TV telling residents if they needed security, they’d better get a gun – police couldn’t help them.
Even after the National Guard arrived, residents reported to the media that they still had to protect themselves because when the sun went down, the soldiers disappeared and residents were once again on their own.
During this TV coverage the overwhelming majority of firearms that residents were using for protection were semi-automatic firearms – firearms would be banned as so-called “assault weapons” by gun ban organizers.
Such tragic disasters often make folks open their eyes to the importance of firearms for protection and the outrageous restriction of gun control laws – particularly waiting period laws and gun ban laws. When you need a firearm for protection you can’t wait and you need the firearm best suited to stop gangs of intruders!
Those whose anti-gun philosophy is manufactured in air-conditioned offices or in homes with electronic security systems and iron gates should take heed. When their anti-gun counterparts in Miami, became victims of a disaster, they quickly had a new perspective on the importance of the Second Amendment’s guarantee of the right of the People to keep and bear arms.
Hurricane Andrew is not the only time Floridians have stepped up to protect their families and their homes with firearms following hurricane disasters; it just hasn’t been widely reported in the anti-gun, anti-self-defense media.
Today, the ice cold reality of self-reliance settles in when people observe professional protesters rioting with violence and destruction. That’s why they are buying guns.
Florida mail carrier mauled to death by loose dogs. Failed warning shots fired to stop attack.
A Florida postal carrier is dead after being mauled by 5 dogs
“One neighbor brought his firearm along and fired several shots in the air in an attempt to disrupt the attack.” “That was unsuccessful.“
August 23, 2022
A U.S. Postal Service carrier who was attacked by five dogs in Putnam County, Florida, has died, a sheriff’s official said.
Pamela Jane Rock, 61, died at a hospital Monday night, the day after the vicious attack, which a neighbor tried to stop by firing into the air, sheriff’s Col. Joseph Wells said Tuesday at a news conference.
“One neighbor brought his firearm along and fired several shots in the air in an attempt to disrupt the attack,” Wells said. “That was unsuccessful.“
Officers applied tourniquets to stem the loss of blood, but during the drive to the hospital, Rock went into cardiac arrest.
Neighbors and the dogs’ owner pulled the animals off Rock after they heard her scream, he said. The animals were seized and will be euthanized. Additional details about the dogs, including size or breed, were not provided.
Rock’s niece told NBC affiliate WTLV of Jacksonville that Rock had recently completed training with the Postal Service and was in a postal vehicle when it broke down Sunday in a neighborhood about 65 miles south of Jacksonville.
She said that her aunt was horrifically wounded and that doctors amputated an arm in their attempt to save her.
Animal control officials had visited the dogs’ home at least twice in the last three years, Wells said.
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“If you shouldn’t get a gun, you shouldn’t get ammunition.”
The State’s government official responsible for processing and issuing Florida’s concealed carry weapons licenses is publicly calling for background checks on all ammunition purchases and transfers.
Recently, Florida Dept. of Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried criticized Governor DeSantis for vetoing her request for the hiring of 83 additional Dept. of Agriculture employees, for the processing of Florida concealed carry weapons license applications.
He just vetoed 83 positions I proposed for my department to thoroughly process concealed weapon licenses in a timely manner to keep Floridians safe.
Nikki Fried’s request for 83 additional employees for the processing of licenses appears odd, in so much as, the Dept. of Agriculture is processing and issuing concealed carry weapons licenses in the shortest turnaround time since 2018. Currently, the average application turnaround time is 2 weeks.
Commissioner Fried’s push for ammunition background checks is neither hers alone nor new. Two bills were submitted for action during the 2022 legislative session SB 334 and HB 181. Sen. Tina Polsky and Rep. Dan Daley are the bill sponsors. “If you shouldn’t get a gun, you shouldn’t get ammunition,” Polsky said. “It stops people from purchasing ammunition without a proper background check.”
Democratic leaders including Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried— a gubernatorial contender — rallied around the legislation Tuesday at a press event.
“We need change here in the state of Florida,” Fried said. “We are not asking for the world. We’re just asking for common-sense changes that are going to prevent future tragedies.”
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Commissioner Nikki Fried Calls on Legislature to Add Gun Violence Prevention Reform to Special Session Agenda
It should be kept in mind that this woman is running to be governor of the state of Florida.
May 24, 2022
Tallahassee, Fla. — Today, Florida Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services Nikki Fried released the following statement on the news of another mass shooting in Texas today:
“I am completely heartbroken and sickened by the news of another horrific mass shooting today in Texas. While our country is still reeling from the racially motivated murders in Buffalo just ten days ago, this is yet another devastating tragedy that took the lives of innocent elementary school students. In Florida, we know all too well the pain and trauma that senseless mass shootings cause in our lives and our communities, and our hearts go out to the victims and everyone who has been hurt by gun violence.
“I want to be completely clear: offering ‘thoughts and prayers’ is not enough. It’s past time for us to take serious and meaningful action to prevent gun violence. The Legislature must add gun violence prevention reform to the current Special Session agenda. There cannot be any more children massacred or lives destroyed by mass shootings while our government sits idly by.”
Belleview teens were shooting each other while wearing armored vest when boy killed
Apr 8, 2022 : WESH 2 – Kelsi Thorud
BELLEVIEW, Fla. — Two teenagers have been arrested after a 16-year-old was shot and killed in Belleview Sunday.
According to police, the shooting happened inside a mobile home in the Gateway Homes of Belleview mobile home park along SE 52ND Court around 7 p.m. They found the victim, 16-year-old Christopher Leroy Broad Jr. suffering from a gunshot wound. He was taken to the hospital where he died.
Over the past few days, investigators have determined that another teen, 17, and Broad, were taking turns shooting at each other while wearing a body armor style vest.
“I saw a teenage boy come outside all hysterical screaming,” said Joe Vanhouten.
Vanhouten is an Army veteran who lives next door. He saw the immediate aftermath of the shooting.
“I was always taught from a young age you never play with guns,” he said.
According to arrest affidavits, three teenage friends, including Broad, lived at the home with one of their fathers. On the day of the shooting, they had a couple more friends over to hang out.
The lead detective discovered that one of the teens recorded Snapchat videos of the shooting. He said one of the videos first shows Broad shooting at one of the others who was wearing a “tan plate carrier style vest.” Another video shows how they took turns and Broad was shot at next five times by a 9 mm handgun.
“It seems weird to me that they would have a body armor vest. Why would you have one?” said Vanhouten.
According to the arrest affidavit, one of the teens told police they have shot at the vest before and no bullets went through it. The report also states the alleged shooter said one of his shots struck Broad in an area not covered by the vest. The medical examiner said he died of a single gunshot wound to the chest.
“A sad deal that teenage boys being I guess being teenagers, not realizing the possible consequences of what they were doing,” said Vanhouten.
Police now have the gun after serving a search warrant on the home. According to the arrest affidavit, the alleged shooter told police the gun belongs to his father who leaves it at home for protection.
“It’s just a sad story all the way around,” said Vanhouten.
Police say the 17-year-old who allegedly shot and killed Broad is now charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child with a firearm.
Another teen, also 17, is charged with providing false information to law enforcement.
Police say that teen was interviewed as a witness to the shooting and misled officers about what took place by blaming the shooting on other people like the other friends at the home and telling the 911 dispatcher that the house was shot by unknown suspects.
WESH 2 is not identifying the teens until they have been formally charged as adults.
WESH 2 tried calling the alleged shooter’s family, but they are not accepting calls. They also did not comment when we visited the neighborhood.
Authorities want everyone to know that guns should never be used this way.
“I’m sure these kids never envisioned that a death was going to occur as a result of their behavior,” Dr. David Thomas, a forensics professor at Florida Gulf Coast University, said.
Thomas said many people don’t understand armored vests.
“The biggest misnomer is that they’re bullet proof because they’re not. They’re ballistic vests and they’re rated on scales of what type of bullet they’ll stop,” Thomas said.
Thomas says even a police officer wearing the best vest wouldn’t want to get shot in it.
“That trauma is ungodly, what the body goes through,” Thomas said.
According to the police report in this case, the alleged shooter said one of his shots hit Christopher in an area not covered by the vest.
Thomas told WESH 2 News, sadly, he thinks a lot of teens don’t understand just how dangerous guns are.
“If you don’t know anything about the gun, if you don’t know anything about the equipment, just leave it alone. Stay safe and leave it alone because it’s not something to play with,” Thomas said.
Fifty-nine of the state’s sheriffs — all but eight of them — are endorsing Senate President Wilton Simpson’s campaign for Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services, the campaign announced Monday.
The Florida Police Benevolent Association has also endorsed Simpson’s campaign, according to a news release from the Simpson campaign.
Simpson is running to succeed Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried, who is leaving the position aiming to become Florida’s next Governor.
The campaign attributed the sheriffs’ united front for Simpson’s campaign to his support for law enforcement.
“As others have tried to defund the police, I fought to ensure Floridians in uniform have the support and resources they need to do their jobs,” Simpson said, according to a news release.
The news release highlighted endorsements of sheriffs from Pasco and Polk counties.
“The women and men in law enforcement start each shift with a mission: to work side by side with members of their community to keep it safe and to make it home to their families,” Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco said. “Wilton Simpson has firmly stood with law enforcement in this mission and understands that protecting our communities and our future will allow Florida to continue to prosper.”
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd credited Simpson’s leadership with bringing Florida’s crime rate to a 50-year low.
“Wilton is a PROVEN LEADER who cares about your safety and wellbeing,” Judd’s written comments read. “He has always supported law enforcement and that is exactly why I support Wilton.”
Simpson, a Trilby Republican, is the heavy favorite to win his party’s nomination for the post and face Democratic candidate Ryan Morales, a Clermont cannabis activist. Simpson has millions on hand for his campaign, compared to Morales and Republican candidates Richard Ollie Jr. and James Shaw, who have done negligible fundraising.
The majority of sheriffs not endorsing Simpson come largely from counties that are larger and traditionally more Democratic counties. Sheriffs from Alachua, Broward, Leon, Miami-Dade, Orange, Osceola, Palm Beach and St. Lucie were not on the list of endorsers.
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The cost of our 5-hour, handgun training / concealed carry qualification class that includes one hour of instructor led, live-fire range training that trains you to safely handle and fire a handgun. Even if you have already taken a ‘concealed carry class’ you will learn more in this class than you ever knew existed regarding the carrying of a firearm in public, guaranteed. This class trains you to do more than how to pull a trigger. This class trains you how to handle, load, unload and fire your gun to hit your target.
$75 – We provide a the handgun and 50 rounds of ammunition or you can bring your own.
ACTIVE SHOOTER TRAINING COURSE – This is an advanced level handgun training course. This course trains to do more than just fire a handgun. This course trains you to defend your life and the lives of your loved ones. If you are going to carry a concealed firearm in public, this is a must have course.
In-Gauge of Polk County’s Active Shooter Training
In-Gauge of Polk County’s Active Shooter Training
In-Gauge of Polk County’s Active Shooter Training
In-Gauge of Polk County’s Active Shooter Training
In-Gauge of Polk County’s Active Shooter Training
Contact us for complete firearms training:
Concealed carry: Basic & Advanced
Pistol: Basic & Advanced
Shotgun
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Active Shooter
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The cost of our basic, minimum standards 3-hour, concealed carry class: $50 All materials included. There are no hidden costs. Completion of this class qualifies the participant for applying for a Florida concealed carry license. (No firearm training included in this class.).
It should be understood that ‘concealed carry classes‘ do NOT teach handgun use, handling or firing. For the most part, they only teach the State laws pertaining to the carrying of firearms and other weapons and where you can and cannot carry a weapon in the state of Florida.
