Florida House Passes Gun Control Bill, Defying NRA
March 8, 2018 by admin
Filed under Lingerie Events
“This isn’t hard,” Mr. Moskowitz said. “Putting your kid in the ground is hard. This is easy.”
“This may be the most consequential vote we ever take on this floor,” said Representative Shawn Harrison, Republican of Tampa. “Grown-ups protect our kids. It’s what we do. It’s our turn. Don’t let them down.”
The legislation passed, with a vote of 67 to 50. Lawmakers rose, looked up into the public gallery and applauded Andrew Pollack, whose daughter, Meadow, was killed in the shooting. He sat through the debate and remained until the vote, even though it likely meant he missed his flight back home.
Newsletter Sign Up
Continue reading the main story
Thank you for subscribing.
An error has occurred. Please try again later.
You are already subscribed to this email.
Hours earlier, the grand jury in Broward County charged Nikolas Cruz, the suspect in the Feb. 14 massacre — one of the deadliest school shootings in American history — with 17 counts of premeditated murder and 17 counts of attempted murder.
The indictment of Mr. Cruz, who has confessed to the killings, was essentially a formality, and the primary legal debate now centers on whether prosecutors should seek the death penalty. Mr. Cruz’s lawyers have offered a plea bargain — consecutive life sentences without parole — in a bid to avoid a trial and the threat of execution.
“The only question is does he live or does he die?” said Howard Finkelstein, the Broward County public defender, whose office is representing Mr. Cruz. “The question for the community, and specifically the victims’ families — is it worth what will be a three-year trial odyssey followed by a 15-year appellate odyssey?”
In the State Capitol on Wednesday afternoon, the provision to voluntarily arm trained school “guardians,” including librarians and school counselors, threatened to derail the legislation. But the families of all 17 people killed in Parkland sent House members a letter on Tuesday urging them to vote yes.
“You must act to prevent mass murder from ever occurring again at any school,” they wrote. “This issue cannot wait. The moment to pass this bill is now.”
On Thursday, several House Democrats cited the letter as the reason they would favor the proposal, even after the Democratic caucus took a formal position against it. The legislation prompted raw comments on the House floor and exposed a racial divide among Democrats: Black legislators warned their white counterparts that arming educators might result in discrimination against students of color.
Advertisement
Continue reading the main story
Gov. Rick Scott, a Republican, has not said if he will sign the bill into law. His own proposal after the Parkland shooting did not envision arming school personnel or requiring a waiting period for all gun purchases.
Continue reading the main story
