Opinion
Florida Carry’s cases against the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (“FDLE”) for violations of your rights are moving forward after multiple victories in Florida’s First District Court of Appeals.
The Pretzer case was filed to challenge FDLE’s creation of a “decision-pending” response that has caused People to wait months or even years to have a decision rendered by FDLE on a firearm purchase despite the law requiring them to issue a timely pre-purchase decision.
The Caranna case was filed to stop FDLE from illegally charging background check fees for firearm purchases by Concealed Carry Licensees and active Law Enforcement (who are exempted by law), to recover those funds for gun owners, and to prevent FDLE from running additional background checks on Licensees and LEOs that are not mandated by federal or state law.
In Pretzer v. Swearingen, 394 So. 3d 175 (Fla. 1st DCA 2024) (En Banc), a unanimous decision of all judges on the court overturned the wrongly decided case of FL Carry v. Thrasher. In the Thrasher case Florida Carry sued the then President of FSU for illegally prohibiting firearms that are properly stored in private vehicles. The court improperly dismissed the case for failing to exhaust a non-existent “administrative remedy” before filing the case, despite the fact that FL Carry did attempt to have the policy reversed without court action and was denied by University officials. Notably the 1DCA Judge who wrote the panel opinion upholding the Thrasher dismissal joined with the En Banc panel to overturn his own decision, the ability to admit when you get it wrong is a testament to intellectual honesty.
Caranna argued that section 790.33 creates a cause of action when an agency promulgates rules in violation of that section and, in the alternative, that they qualified for an exception to the exhaustion requirement because there was no adequate administrative remedy and FDLE acted without colorable statutory authority. They further argued that FDLE acted unconstitutionally because the rule “plainly contradicts” section 790.33.
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We held in Pretzer that a plaintiff suing a state agency under section 790.33(3)(f) is not required to exhaust an administrative remedy…
Caranna & FL Carry v. Glass & FDLE, 392 So. 3d 296, 297 (Fla. 1st DCA 2024)
Replacing Commissioner Rick Swearingen, Mark Glass was appointed Commissioner of FDLE by Governor Ron DeSantis on May 1, 2022, and confirmed by the Florida Cabinet on August 23, 2022. Commissioner Glass has continued his predecessors’ violations of your rights.
These are Class Action lawsuits. If you purchased a firearm in Florida since 2015 or were given a “decision-pending” response to a firearm purchase background check, go to FDLElawsuit.com to find out if you may qualify as an additional plaintiff or class member.
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About Florida Carry, Inc.:
Florida Carry is a Florida nonprofit, non-partisan, grassroots organization founded in 2010. Florida Carry is dedicated to advancing the fundamental civil right of all Floridians to keep and bear arms for self-defense as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution and the Constitution of Florida. In 2016 Florida Carry was named the Grassroots Organization of the Year by the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms.
Florida Carry, Inc. was organized in order to better coordinate activities, effectively lobby the state legislature, and to provide a legal entity capable of filing suit to demand compliance with state and federal law. Florida Carry stands to represent our members, millions of gun owners, and the countless knife and defensive weapon carriers of Florida. We are not beholden to any national organization’s agenda that may compromise that mission. Florida Carry is the state’s largest independent second amendment advocacy organization.
