Florida’s open carry ruling, which expands gun rights in public, took effect Sept. 25 — but Sarasota and Manatee businesses can still bar firearms.
On Sept. 10, Florida’s 1st District Court of Appeal ruled that the state’s long-standing ban on visibly carrying firearms in public is unconstitutional. The decision comes despite research linking looser gun laws to higher rates of violent crime, suicides, firearm thefts and law enforcement shootings.
Business owners, however, can still prohibit firearms on their premises by posting signs or directly telling customers, and deputies can treat refusals to comply as trespassing. The ruling broadens where guns can be carried in public, but it doesn’t strip businesses of control over their own spaces.
Despite their long-standing opposition to open carry, the Florida Sheriffs Association advised all 67 sheriff’s offices not to arrest people exercising open carry after the ruling.
How are Sarasota gun safety advocates responding to Florida’s open carry law?
It’s jarring for Carol Rescigno, president of Brady’s Sarasota chapter, a gun violence prevention nonprofit.
She doesn’t know how to quiet that instinct that screams at her to run away from someone who is openly carrying a gun. Rescigno is most worried for law enforcement who have to discern whether someone openly carrying a gun on the street is a public threat.
She questions whether people who carry guns openly will be more apt to use them during road rage or a fights.
“Floridians have not had guns out in the open, and it’s kind of a terrifying thought for a lot of people,” Resigno said. “When you consider how many people nowadays have had someone either get shot or been in a shooting situation, it’s going to be triggering.”
Matthew Binkley, SCSO Community Affairs Manager, shared that all SCSO personnel have received legal updates from the agency’s general counsel’s office. Moving forward, continued training and education on open carry will be implemented for deputies.
“Deputies should expect that members of the public will express concern, confusion or even alarm as they adjust to the sight of firearms in places where they were not previously accustomed to seeing them,” Binkley said. “Our responsibility to the community has not changed. We remain committed to protecting both the rights and the safety of all citizens.”
Can private businesses prohibit open carrying?
Business owners don’t need to provide prior written notice and may verbally ask a person carrying a firearm to leave. If a person refuses to leave after being asked to do so, they commit the felony crime of armed trespass.
“The exercise of the constitutional right to keep and bear arms does not entitle a person to disregard the rights of property owners,” said Matthew Binkley, SCSO Community Affairs Manager. “Just as a restaurant may require patrons to wear shirts and shoes as a condition of service, a business may prohibit firearms on its premises.”
Florida’s ‘red flag’ laws still apply
The change in open carry only applies to people legally allowed to possess a firearm. It does not affect other restrictions in Florida’s gun laws, such as restrictions for people under the age of 21, convicted felons, “violent career criminals,” or people who have restraining orders from committing acts of domestic violence.
Florida’s red flag laws for risk protection orders also still apply. Under those laws, firearms may be taken from individuals who:
Where is open-carry not allowed in Sarasota-Manatee counties?
The rules leave in place some exceptions, which include businesses, stores and private property owners that opt to have a no-guns policy, and that can also apply to concealed weapons.
Additionally, publicly owned buildings are exempt, including courthouses; police and sheriff’s offices; certain government buildings; school property, including K–12 campuses, school buses, and school-sponsored events; and colleges and universities.
Why Florida Has Held Off on Open Carry
Florida banned open carry 1987 under Republican Gov. Bob Martinez, citing public safety and tourism concerns.
The state has resisted open carry for decades, largely due to opposition from the Florida Sheriffs Association, representing 67 elected sheriffs and about 3,500 businesses. Past efforts, including a 2016 attempt and a proposed 2025 bill, were blocked amid concerns that open carry creates “significant public safety challenges.”
Sheriffs have warned that visible guns make it harder for officers to assess threats at active crime scenes. In states that eased carry restrictions, officer-involved shootings increased 12.9%, according to Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
What the research says about public safety impacts
A 41-year study of 217 cities found higher rates of violent crime after states relaxed firearm carry laws, according to Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Gun-related suicides, now the deadliest form of firearm deaths, have risen sharply. In 2023, over 27,300 Americans died by gun suicide. States allowing open carry without a permit saw an 18% increase in firearm suicides over nine years.
Gun-related homicides have decreased since the 1990s, but suicides now make up 60% of firearm deaths in the U.S.
Melissa Pérez-Carrillo covers breaking news and public safety for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Reach out at mperezcarrillo@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Can Sarasota businesses ban guns? What to know about Florida’s open carry law
Reporting by Melissa Pérez-Carrillo, Sarasota Herald-Tribune / Sarasota Herald-Tribune
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