PINELLAS COUNTY – Attorney General James Uthmeier issued guidance yesterday to Florida law enforcement agencies regarding the First District Court of Appeals decision in McDaniels v. State. In guidance that considers the impact of prior Florida Supreme Court and other appellate court decisions, the Attorney General states that the McDaniels decision makes Florida’s general statutory ban on the open carry of guns unconstitutional.
We will follow the Attorney General’s guidance and adhere to the court’s decision in McDaniels, and F.S. 790.053 (general prohibition on open carry of firearms) will not be enforced by the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office. Nonetheless, Sheriff Gualtieri remind the public that as stated by the court in its decision, the decision is not final (effective) until September 26, 2025, and everyone should respect that effective date.
As the McDaniels court recognized in its opinion and the Attorney General stated in his guidance, this does not mean that the open carry of guns is totally unrestricted and that people can openly carry anywhere and everywhere. There are restrictions. The law does not permit the open carry of a firearm in places restricted by F.S. 790.06(12)(a) (schools, city and county commission meetings, courthouses, police stations, and sheriff’s offices, etc.); people cannot openly carry a firearm in a “rude or careless” manner (F.S. 790.10); and businesses, such as grocery stores, restaurants, banks, shopping centers, etc. may prohibit anyone from openly (or concealed) carrying a firearm on their property.
Importantly, people should be aware that if someone openly carries a firearm on property where it is prohibited by the owner, they may be subject to arrest for armed trespass, which is a felony under Florida law. Everyone needs to be respectful of property owners’ rights as we will be respectful of Second Amendment rights in public places.