The Gun Owners of America (GOA), which represents over two million members, has filed a lawsuit against the city of Jacksonville.
GOA, along with the Gun Owners Foundation (GOF), Florida Carry, and individual plaintiffs, alleges the city violated their Second Amendment rights at a local event.
The suit is challenging a firearm restriction enforced at City-owned venues across Jacksonville. The suit names Duval Sheriff T.K. Waters, Mayor Donna Deegan, and the city.
Luis Valdes, the GOA Florida State Director, who is also a plaintiff in the suit, said the city crossed the line when they tried to implement a local firearm restriction that is preempted by state law.
“There is a pattern the city of Jacksonville has, by going around disarming law-abiding gun owners, violating their rights,” said Valdes.
The complaint by the GOA lists several locations where lawfully concealed carriers were forced to disarm or denied entry. The locations were the Moran Theater, Florida Theatre, Jacksonville Fairgrounds, and EverBank Stadium, where the Jacksonville Jags play their games.
It began when Valdes set up a gun booth at an event featuring Sirius XM radio host Megyn Kelly.
The local police officer told Valdes he was not allowed to carry his firearm. Valdes says the officer was in the wrong because the location and event were not a gun-free zone.
“Jacksonville does not get to invent its own gun laws. Florida law is clear that it preempts localities from imposing stricter gun control,” Valdez said.
In the lawsuit, GOA points out that city was wrong because they declared the location and event as an area where guns were not.
But GOA says the city is way off base. This was not a sporting event. It wasn’t a school or a police station.
Vades says the stadium can only be gun-free when it’s a sporting event, while they do the same stadium.
