Florida politicians consider allowing teachers to carry guns

A bill being considered would also raise the age to buy a rifle, and implement a three day waiting period for firearm purchases

A gun control advocate outside of the US Capitol Building in Washington (Getty)

The Florida State Legislature is considering a bill that would allow teachers to carry guns at school, raise the age restriction to buy a rifle, and create a three-day waiting period for firearms purchases.

A Florida House committee brought that bill one step closer to becoming law Tuesday, nearly two weeks after a mass shooting a Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School that killed 17 students and faculty members, in vote that came out 23-6.

The committee’s approval followed after more than four hours of emotional discussion between representatives in the Florida House and some of the parents who lost children on Valentines Day.

“It doesn’t go far enough, and now it goes too far in other areas,” Democratic Rep Jared Moskowitz, a former Parkland vice mayor, said of the bill he ultimately voted for. “But the NRA opposes it, and I will not vote with the NRA.”

One of the parents in attendance, Max Schachter, whose 14-year-old son Alex was a victim of the massacre, echoed the sentiment but said he thinks it could have saved his son.

“While the proposed bill does not meet all of my goals, the components of the bill would have saved my little boy Alex,” he said. “And if we would have had these measures in place, I would not have had to bury my son next to his mother a week and a half ago.”

The discussions in Tallahassee Tuesday contrasted sharply with protests that had taken place just a day earlier in the state’s capital. The discussions were more orderly, according to the Associated Press, compared to the sometimes rowdy protesters the day before.

The bill, in addition to allowing teachers to use their concealed weapons permits at school, would also raise the age restriction for buying a rifle form 18 to 21, and would keep guns out of people’s hands for three days.

The state Senate was expected to take up a similar bill Tuesday.

The AP contributed to this report