Florida ban on open carry of guns unconstitutional, appeals court rules

Romy Ellenbogen, Tampa Bay Times on Sep 10, 2025

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida is a step closer to allowing the open carry of firearms in public, based on a court decision out of the Panhandle.

On Wednesday, the Florida First District Court of Appeal ruled that the state’s open carry ban is unconstitutional, saying that it conflicts with the Second Amendment’s guarantee of the right to bear arms.

The case originated from the 2022 arrest of Stanley McDaniels in Escambia County. McDaniels, before the arrest, had livestreamed himself carrying a visible, holstered pistol and a copy of the U.S. Constitution in downtown Pensacola.

The state appeals court said that under the U.S. Supreme Court’s new framework for evaluating restrictions on the Second Amendment, Florida’s ban didn’t pass muster.

The Florida Supreme Court in 2017 upheld Florida’s open carry ban, but the First District appeals court said the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court case takes precedence.

“No historical tradition supports Florida’s Open Carry Ban,” the court wrote in its opinion. “To the contrary, history confirms that the right to bear arms in public necessarily includes the right to do so openly.”

All three judges in the case concurred. Judge Lori S. Rowe was appointed by former Gov. Charlie Crist, and Judges Stephanie W. Ray and M. Kemmerly Thomas were appointed by former Gov. Rick Scott.

Florida is one of four states — alongside Illinois, Connecticut, and California — that ban open carry in nearly all circumstances for all kinds of firearms. Florida’s ban has been in effect since 1987.

The court’s ruling isn’t final until the time for a rehearing has run out. The Florida Attorney General’s Office had been defending the open carry ban in the case under former Attorney General Ashley Moody.

But Attorney General James Uthmeier, who stepped into the role in February, will not seek a rehearing or Florida Supreme Court review. Uthmeier said on social media that he “fully supports the Court’s decision.”

“This is a big win for the Second Amendment rights of Floridians,” Uthmeier said. “As we’ve all witnessed over the last few days, our God-given right to self-defense is indispensable.”

Gov. Ron DeSantis has supported open carry and has called for the Legislature to pass it, along with other changes to firearm legislation. But Florida’s Republican lawmakers have demurred.

Instead, in 2023, Florida lawmakers passed a law allowing people to carry concealed guns without a permit and without training.

DeSantis, in a social media post, said the court’s decision “aligns state policy with my long-held position and with the vast majority of states throughout the union.”

“Ultimately, the court correctly ruled that the text of the Second Amendment — ‘to keep and bear arms’ — says what it means and means what it says," DeSantis said.

Even if Florida’s law prohibiting open carry were nullified, state law still bars people from carrying firearms in any capacity to certain places, including police stations, courthouses, polling places and college campuses.

Luis Valdes, the Florida director of Gun Owners of America, applauded the court’s decision, saying that it was especially important “after the Republican supermajority Legislature has failed to address this issue for a number of years now.”

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