The National Rifle Association is wasting no time to respond to Florida's new gun control legislation.
The NRA filed a lawsuit against the state of Florida on Friday, shortly after Gov. Rick Scott (R) signed Senate Bill 7026 into law, CNN reports.
The new law raises the minimum age to purchase a firearm from 18 to 21, bans the sale or possession of bump stocks, and allows law enforcement to seize weapons and ammunition from those deemed mentally unfit among other provisions.
The legislation came in response to the school shooting in Parkland, Florida that left 17 people dead and several seriously injured. The 19-year-old shooting suspect was a former student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and had a history of mental illness.
"This bill punishes law-abiding gun owners for the criminal acts of a deranged individual," argues executive director of the NRA Institute for Legislative Action Chris W. Cox. "Securing our schools and protecting the constitutional rights of Americans are not mutually exclusive."
According to CNN, “The lawsuit, filed in the Northern District of Florida, says the new law violates the second and 14th amendments of the US Constitution. The NRA argues people who are 18 years old are considered adults ‘for almost all purposes and certainly for the purposes of the exercise of fundamental constitutional rights.’ The organization also contends federal law already prevents many Americans 21 or younger from buying certain types of guns. Florida's law unconstitutionally broadens those limits, the NRA says.”
The law, known as the “Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act,” was passed by the Florida House 67 to 50 votes on Thursday.
Gov. Scott signed the bill into law on Friday. It also includes a provision that allows for some teachers to be armed on school premises.
This story is developing.
(Cover Photo: Screenshot)
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