The Florida Senate rejected a ban on assault weapons, and voted for a measure to arm some teachers. The vote was 20-17 against the assault weapon ban, with two Republicans joining all of the senate's 15 Democrats in support of the proposal.
The amendment that would have banned assault weapons attached to a wider bill failed on Saturday, The Associated Press reported, in response to the Feb. 14 killing of 14 students and three faculty at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in the Fort Lauderdale suburb of Parkland.
The full bill, the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act, is expected to pass the state Senate on Monday, then go to the Florida House.
An amendment to remove a provision to train and arm some teachers failed.
The bill raises the minimum age to buy a rifle or a shotgun to 21 from 18 and bans the use, sale or possession of bump stocks, which were used in the Oct. 1 shooting deaths of 58 people in Las Vegas. The device effectively turns semi-automatic weapons into automatics.
The bill includes $400 million in funding for schools to address mental health issues, the Miami Herald reported.
Nikolas Cruz, the accused 19-year-old killer who was expelled from Stoneman Douglas, had a history of run-ins with the law and school officials. The Broward County school system and sheriff's department have been criticized for not acting on red flags on Cruz's mental health problems and potentially violent behavior.
© 2025 Thomson/Reuters. All rights reserved.