Florida

The Florida legislature passed the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act (Florida’s ERPO law) following the tragic shooting at the law’s namesake school that left 17 dead and another 17 injured. The law went into effect in March 2018.

Florida’s Risk Protection Order (RPO) temporarily prohibits a person who poses a significant danger of causing personal injury to self or others from possessing firearms and ammunition.¹ Only law enforcement officers are permitted to ask the court for an RPO, but family and friends may work with a local law enforcement agency to file a petition.

Once law enforcement files an RPO petition, the court schedules a hearing within 14 days to determine if an RPO should be issued.² At the hearing, if the court finds the respondent to be a threat to self or others by having access to firearms, an RPO is issued for up to one year. The court may issue a temporary RPO on an ex parte basis before the hearing if the petition details that the respondent poses a significant danger of personal injury to self or others in the near future. The court must hold a temporary ex parte RPO hearing in person or by telephone on the day the petition is filed or on the business day immediately following the day the petition is filed. A temporary ex parte RPO ends upon the hearing on the RPO.

Florida’s RPO law includes ex parte RPOs issued by judicial officers; a hearing where the respondent is provided notice and an opportunity to participate; the respondent’s right to counsel (at no expense to the government); and the requirement of relevant evidence (e.g. the enumerated factors the judicial officer must consider) to issue an RPO.