Guns shape close of state's legislative session; locals gather for vigil

TALLAHASSEE — Gov. Rick Scott and the Republican-controlled Legislature scrambled Monday to respond to last week’s slaughter at a Broward County high school that left 17 people dead and renewed calls for tougher limits on high-powered firearms.

Scott, who is expected to challenge Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in November, has, instead, turned the focus toward school safety and keeping guns away from those with mental illness. House and Senate Democrats want a ban on assault weapons and a restriction on the number of rounds guns can fire.

But the demand for gun limits is expected to grow louder at the Florida Capitol this week, with 100 students from Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School set to arrive by bus late Tuesday.

Joined by students from Florida State University and area high schools, along with many, mostly Democratic legislators, the Parkland students plan to rally Wednesday at the Capitol.

“We really have to balance all sides, and that’s what we’re trying to do,” said Sen. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, expected to be the next leader of the Florida Senate.

Galvano on Monday was shopping to fellow legislators a package of proposals that include raising the minimum age to 21 for buying high-capacity assault rifles; giving law enforcement and family members more tools for keeping weapons away from the mentally ill; and spending millions of dollars more on mental health counseling and resource officers at schools.

Galvano said he also was open to “discussion” about extending the state’s three-day waiting period for handguns to all gun purchases. Nikolas Cruz, the teenager charged in last week’s shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, was not subject to any waiting period when he bought the AR-15 assault rifle police say he used in the attack.

It wasn’t immediately clear whether Galvano’s approach would be embraced by the more conservative House, where Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’Lakes, is expected to soon announce his candidacy for governor.

For his part, Scott announced a series of workshops with school officials, law enforcement and mental health experts. Among those scheduled to take part in the education session are Sarasota County School Board Chair Bridget Ziegler, Booker High School Principal Rachel Shelley and Manatee County School Board Chairman Scott Hopes.

With only three weeks left scheduled for the 2018 legislative session, Scott and lawmakers are trying to devise a response to the state’s third mass shooting in less than two years, following Orlando’s Pulse Nightclub and another at the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood Airport.

“This is an urgent matter that we have to address quickly,” Scott said.

Florida is among 25 states that get an “F” rating from the major gun-control group, the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. Last week’s attack seems to have heightened a divide long in Florida.

Polls show gun-control is much more popular in the state’s more Democratic-heavy lower half. Legislation banning assault weapons was filed by two Orlando Democrats, Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith and Sen. Linda Stewart, but has failed even to get a hearing in Tallahassee, where Republicans set the agenda for the House and Senate.

“If there was ever a time for sit-ins, nonviolent demonstrations, and protests at the Florida, the time is NOW,” Rep. Kionne McGhee, D-Miami, said on Twitter.

But last week’s shooting has prompted something of a truce, in what is usually a Legislature inclined to expand gun access.

Senate Judiciary Chair Greg Steube, R-Sarasota, withdrew legislation his committee was set to vote on Tuesday that would have allowed schools to designate a concealed weapons permit-holder to carry a gun on campus. The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Dennis Baxley, R-Ocala, said Monday that he didn’t want to spark a fight over what critics have called an expansion of gun rights in Florida.

“I don’t think we’re ready for that discussion right now,” Baxley said. “I’m trying to solve a problem. Having a school as a gun-free zone, while well intentioned, makes it a sterile target. That would change if there was armed resistance.”

Baxley has another bill set to go Wednesday before the full Senate that would allow people to carry their concealed weapons to church, even if there was a school on the grounds. He said Monday that was still scheduled for debate.

“But whether it is brought up, is going to be up to leadership,” Baxley said.

At City Island Park on Monday, roughly 40 people gathered for a candlelight vigil honoring those who lost their lives last Wednesday.

Among them was Kelli Chehaitti, whose nephew is a student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High. Her nephew is the captain of the cross country team, whose coach, Scott Beigel, 35, was among those killed.

Chehaitti said her nephew was tasked with calling his teammates to tell them the news. Two of his teammates also were among those hospitalized.

"He's not talking much," Chehaitti said of her nephew. "This has been so hard on him and my family. Their lives have been changed."

Also among the candle-holders Monday was Jenny LaPond, who brought her 15-year-old son, Jake, with her.

"I think it's one thing to hear about it on the news, but I wanted him to come to this," she said. "I wanted to make it a little more personal for him."

Jake LaPond didn't put up any resistance.

"I'm glad I got to come down," said LaPond, who is a student at Spruce Creek High School. "It's just crazy to think something as awful as this could happen at a school."

News-Journal staff writer Tony Holt contributed to this report.