TexasCHLforum.com

Interesting piece on backyard gun ranges springing up in Florida. I wonder how long they will last with the local governments crying foul....

http://news.yahoo.com/florida-mayor-fig ... ector.html

They are doing this based on a Florida law that gives the state the only say in gun control.

Varrieur, 57, discovered a little-noticed part of Florida law which prohibits local governments from restricting gun rights in any way, and in December he set up a personal gun range on his property in a residential subdivision.

Neighbors were outraged by the live gunfire, but their surprise was nothing compared to that of municipal leaders, who were shocked to realize there was nothing they could do about it.

Under Florida Statute 790, gun control is solely under state, not local, jurisdiction. The only state restriction on recreational shooting on private residential property is that the bullets cannot fly over a paved public road or an occupied dwelling, and that shots cannot be "reckless or negligent."

Legislators in 2011 put teeth into the law by imposing a $5,000 fine and authorizing the governor to remove from office any local government official who attempts to restrict gun use.

Florida actually put some teeth into their law to handle local officials who overstep state preemption. I wonder if there is a lesson here for Texas ?

Texas tried to put teeth into posting of 30.06 last session and it didn't get anywhere. Maybe this session we will do better.

Anybody want to guess how this is going to come out in the wash? IMHO, unless the subdivision has lots of substantial size (think 10 acres), a backyard is not a sutible place for a gun range.
I live in a subdivision on acre lots - if the guy behind me starts popping off rounds in his backyard, legal or not, he and I are going to have a problem.
The end result in the story linked by the OP will be a change in the law resulting in fewer gun rights because some guy abused a loophole in what was a well intentioned law. This gets back to the idea that just because you can do something doesn't mean you should do it.

jmra wrote:The end result in the story linked by the OP will be a change in the law resulting in fewer gun rights because some guy abused a loophole in what was a well intentioned law. This gets back to the idea that just because you can do something doesn't mean you should do it.

Yep, even though I strongly agree with state preemption for weapons, I do think that this is a train wreck in motion.

jmra wrote:This gets back to the idea that just because you can do something doesn't mean you should do it.

Absolutely right! I didn't see anything about how big this guy's lot was, but the pic sure looks tight to me.

I'd also like to know how often he and his wife practice and whether he informs any neighbors (says he informs the sheriff's dept--why?).

It's very bizarre that he "stations his wife and father on the edge of the canal to warn him if a boat is coming." WHY would he do that, unless he was concerned he'd either miss his backstop or that his backstop would fail. Either would be totally unacceptable IMO.

A couple of things are certain: this guy is not very smart, and he is a crappy neighbor.

And then there's that "negligent" word... I think what he's doing quite likely qualifies as negligent.

Something doesn't add up. If the homeowner lives on an island in Monroe County, how is his home with a range any business of the Mayor of a town 150 miles away in Broward County? Ryan and the Sunrise city council would have no jurisdiction over an unincorporated community in a completely different county regardless. The uproar over Florida state law preventing podunk politicians from passing anti-gun laws is a red herring.

Maybe the hatchet job writer thinks we're too stupid to put two and two together? I'm almost surprised they didn't try to link this to SYG in Florida.