SB 234 signed into law yesterday (renting, mattress, attorney)

[Iamrita]

Awww. That is precious. And funny too.

Now how about that Taser I mentioned...What are the legalities, etc. of carrying one?

[Old Man Winter]

Originally Posted by Iamrita

Awww. That is precious. And funny too.

Now how about that Taser I mentioned...What are the legalities, etc. of carrying one?

FloridaLegal with restrictions

• Cannot carry electric weapon or device in concealed manner but can carry for self-defense purposes a nonlethal remote stun gun (790.01)
• License to carry concealed electric weapon or device (790.06)
• Open carrying of weapons allowed for nonlethal electric weapons that do not fire a dart or projectile (790.053)
• Must be authorized to have on school ground or at school functions (790.115)
• Use by under 16 only with adult supervision; adult subject to penalty (790.22)

I hope this helps Rita. The statues can be referenced on the Florida senate website individually for clarification. If you need me too I will do that for you and post them individually so there are no grey areas for you.

My neighbor just got one from her husband as a gift, she loves it. She is like a little non lethal Ramboette with it too. She has a small one for her purse and a larger one she clips on her belt

[Iamrita]

Originally Posted by bbronston

Speaking for myself, I completely agree with everything you said and I do the same things. I've tried to teach my daughter and wife the same things. The problem comes when you run up against a sociopath who wants to hurt you (or is completely devoid of any ability to value another human being) whether you throw your wallet away or avoid the shadows or lock your car door. I've never met one but I know they are there because I read stories about them EVERY DAY. People choose to deal with that reality in many different ways. In our country, we are afforded the right to choose to deal with that reality with gun ownership. You said you don't see the need and that is fine. Obviously, others do see a need and only wish to keep that right intact. No one is right and no one is wrong. The only wrong choice is to do away with the right.

I agree with you on the sociopath issue. I was employed for several years as a psychiatric RN on a triple-locked building of a state hospital where the patients were housed by virtue of the fact that they were NGRI (not guilty by reason of insanity). IMHO, there were some people who had valid psychiatric issues, but then there were others, (how should I say this?), whose fate had been determined by some rather creative lawyering, that being found NGRI rather than guilty, and ending up on a locked down psych ward which provided more personal freedom than a prison would allow. I'm sure you get the picture.

So I found myself a nurse to people who had (in many cases) long criminal records which included violent acts of murder, torture, sadism, pedophilia, etc. I got to "know" my patients over the years I worked there both through personal interaction and through the medical charts/personal history/legal paperwork I had access to as a nurse.

Long before I worked in that capacity I felt I had developed an ability to hone in on my "gut" feelings about a situation. There is a vaild reason why the hair on the back of your neck sticks up---it is very primal and very real and believe me when I say you should ALWAYS heed that as well as other instinctual cues. God gave us these mechanisms for a reason, that is to survive.

I am thankful for what I learned in that position. In addition to my education the face-to-face daily interactions with my patients gave me great insight into human (or in many cases inhuman) nature. There were incidents throughout the years but I was fortunate not to have been involved in any. As a poster pointed out, de-escalation was frequently used.

[Iamrita]

Originally Posted by Old Man Winter

FloridaLegal with restrictions

• Cannot carry electric weapon or device in concealed manner but can carry for self-defense purposes a nonlethal remote stun gun (790.01)
• License to carry concealed electric weapon or device (790.06)
• Open carrying of weapons allowed for nonlethal electric weapons that do not fire a dart or projectile (790.053)
• Must be authorized to have on school ground or at school functions (790.115)
• Use by under 16 only with adult supervision; adult subject to penalty (790.22)

I hope this helps Rita. The statues can be referenced on the Florida senate website individually for clarification. If you need me too I will do that for you and post them individually so there are no grey areas for you.

My neighbor just got one from her husband as a gift, she loves it. She is like a little non lethal Ramboette with it too. She has a small one for her purse and a larger one she clips on her belt

Thanks for the information. All things considered I admit that I feel more vulnerable as I age. I'm not out of shape, or a weakling by any stretch of the imagination it's just that realistically speaking I am now 50-Something and I'm sure more of a "target" than a younger woman. I think a taser will provide me with a nice layer of protection, or at least give me some additional time to escape...

[gettinoutofjersey]

iamrita, you are the perfect canidate to ccw. someone that does not want to use it but would rather be aware of their situations so that they do not have to. i know that i never want to since the legal fees would be huge. i do feel safer with it since no one can predict when a drug induced crime will take place. cops up in pinellas had to shoot a guy because the taser had no affect and he was out of control and going for the cops gun. thats a perfect reason not to open carry. i just want the open carry so that they cannot prosecute it for becoming visible

[Iamrita]

Originally Posted by gettinoutofjersey

iamrita, you are the perfect canidate to ccw. someone that does not want to use it but would rather be aware of their situations so that they do not have to. i know that i never want to since the legal fees would be huge. i do feel safer with it since no one can predict when a drug induced crime will take place. cops up in pinellas had to shoot a guy because the taser had no affect and he was out of control and going for the cops gun. thats a perfect reason not to open carry. i just want the open carry so that they cannot prosecute it for becoming visible

I guess I've come full circle here (obviously) with regard to personal protection. I can see myself with a taser, (as I stated, I have carried MACE before), and I lack confidence to handle a gun. In an emergent situation I would rather have a weapon which would temporarily disable (as opposed to kill) a predator. I don't think I have the ability to make choices (with limited skills) as to where I would shoot a bullet to disable rather than kill a human being. I really don't know the scope and limitations of taser use but I am open to exploring this issue.

[bbronston]

From what I've read, the typical non-projectile stungun literally only stings and doesn't really incapacitate. The type that shoots the darts will basically scramble the assailant's nervous system long enough to get away. There's a huge difference in price, too. Of course, if you miss with the darts, you better have your running shoes on. :-)

[Iamrita]

Originally Posted by bbronston

From what I've read, the typical non-projectile stungun literally only stings and doesn't really incapacitate. The type that shoots the darts will basically scramble the assailant's nervous system long enough to get away. There's a huge difference in price, too. Of course, if you miss with the darts, you better have your running shoes on. :-)

Forgive me... Oy! Now I have to know how to aim darts???

[CDusr]

Pepper spray may not be a bad option. Mace smells so god awful. I have wondered about the stun gun effectiveness myself.

The issue of having to shoot someone is a very real issue.

[dishing the 9411]

Originally Posted by Old Man Winter

Rita, I dont think you are naive at all. I also respect your right to not be armed and I am happy that you have been to so many places without incident. I am a man, I have never traveled to another country and on 3 occassions here in Florida I have thanked the founding fathers for providing the constitutional right for us to bear arms. Two home break ins in Bradenton over a two year period and an attempted carjacking in Bradenton. I always had guns but never carried one on my person until those events happened.

That was 16 or 17 years ago and I have not an occassion since, but I can assure you I will always be armed. I will not be a victim to some low life scumback that thinks he can take what is mine or inflict harm to my family, I just wont let it happen.

People on either side of the issue dont understand the other sides position, it is crazy to you to think of me being armed, it is crazy for me to think of a woman unarmed. In my view an unarmed woman is possitioning herself to be a victim, an unarmed man is not responsible nor capable of defending his family. I dont think there is a right or wrong answer, we all have choices. I would rather be armed and never need to use my weapon than not be armed and need it.

I recently had a discussion with my wife asking her to attend some training classes with my instructor and then continue her training with me, she refused because she hates guns. I respect her decission and take comfort in the fact that she wont cave due to pressure from me. She has over time become very comfortable with me carrying, we use to have a dont ask dont tell policy. Now when we go out she always asks in the car in the driveway, honey are you carrying. My reply is always a head nod. I cant protect her from all the evil in the world, but at least I have a fighting chance.

I feel the water gets muddy and people fail to realise that law abiding people with guns dont kill people or commit crime. The focus is on the gun, that evil piece of metal. No, the gun is a tool and if in the wrong hands any tool can be used as a weapon. Society cant keep blaming an inanimate object, it needs to focus on the person behind the act. We could rid the country of guns, guess what, criminals would just find another weapon.

Be well Rita

You say that society cannot blame an inanimate object. I ask why not? This is really the elephant in the room when we discuss the issue of gun violence and societies role in regulating gun ownership. Its hard to really grasp the issue until we look at it honestly. I offered hard data in a previous post outlining the horrors of gun violence. A gun has a single purpose and that purpose is to kill people. You say that a gun is a tool and not an evil piece of metal. I agree that a gun is a tool; however, the idea that it is evil is a very important point for discussion. If a gun has only one function and it is to destroy life; wouldn't that fit the definition of evil? Killing, murder, unjust wars, taking another humans life are society's evils. Wouldn't you say? Then what would you call the tool with a sole purpose of accomplishing this act? I would say that this is at heart of the matter. You can deflect the question by blaming the owner. Your argument goes a long way as most Americans have a strong affinity towards the gun. However, its important to remember this 'tool' is an implement with a singular purpose of snuffing out human life. I would say that the people who choose to call guns evil are well within reason. Now, we should ponder the follow-up question to this line of reasoning, is the human race ready for a world without guns?