John Mina, the sheriff in Orange County, Florida, which includes the city of Orlando, opposes the implementation of a measure newly signed by that state’s Republican governor, Ron DeSantis, allowing otherwise eligible residents to covertly carry firearms without a permit. That idea, which has also been prominently implemented in other largely GOP-led states like Texas and Georgia, arbitrarily eliminates an entire avenue of oversight for firearms.
DeSantis himself has also expressed support for allowing open carry without a permit, although there has also been other opposition from law enforcement in the state to that idea, and it wasn’t included in the gun policy package he’s signed into law. “Go ask the street cop what he or she thinks about encountering lots of people with a gun stuck in their waistband,” Mina said in an interview. “It’s not going to make our communities safer. It’s going to make them more dangerous.” The chat was with Jon Stewart, the longtime political commentator and interviewer. “Permit-less carry will only make things more difficult for law enforcement,” a caption said in a post from Mina sharing highlights from the interview.
Mina has also previously expressed opposition to the idea of once again lowering the age at which Floridians can purchase various types of long guns, an age requirement that was raised after the mass shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida — and a policy change implemented, surprisingly enough, by Republican leaders in Florida. The opponents to DeSantis’s idea of open carry without a permit have included the sheriff in Pinellas County, which is in the state’s middle regions, and the head of the Florida state Senate also joined.
Permit-less carry will only make things more difficult for law enforcement. https://t.co/4UgoQNdr21
— Sheriff John Mina (@SheriffMina) April 3, 2023
