Politics
Man at center of landmark Florida open-carry gun ruling calls himself ‘patriot’
The man at the center of a landmark court decision allowing people in Florida to openly carry guns is watching the consequences of his legal fight from inside a jail cell in Florida’s Panhandle.
Despite the appeals court’s dramatic expansion of gun rights in the Sunshine State, the defendant in the case won’t be allowed to possess a gun even once he’s released. In an exclusive interview from the Escambia County Jail — convicted months ago in an unrelated, misdemeanor domestic violence case — Stanley Victor McDaniels, 42, called himself a patriot and indicated he has no regrets.
“I am thankful that through my current persecution, I have been given another opportunity to change Florida law for the better,” McDaniels said in a video interview from the jail. He spoke with a reporter from Fresh Take Florida, a news service operated by the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications. McDaniels is expected to be released in January.
In the interview, McDaniels described a secret war fought in the courts to limit gun rights. He acknowledged that, because of his recent domestic violence conviction, he is barred under federal law from possessing or buying a gun even after he serves his jail term. The irony isn’t lost on him.
“Even if I was free, I wouldn’t be able to participate in the now legal open carry of a firearm, even though my case set the new precedent,” he said. “One may think I have sacrificed too much to further the American dream of liberty and justice. But as a patriot, I would do it all again, as all true patriots would.”
A three-Judge panel for the 1st District Court of Appeals unanimously struck down Florida’s decades-old ban on openly carrying firearms, declaring the law unconstitutional Sept. 10 and calling open carry the “default mode of bearing arms.” It wasn’t immediately clear how many visibly armed citizens will be walking the streets of Miami, Tampa, Orlando, Jacksonville or elsewhere starting this week.
Some Sheriffs discouraged it.
“You don’t scare away real bad guys by carrying a firearm in a holster. You don’t scare real bad guys by slinging an (assault rifle) over your shoulder,” Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said in a viral social media post. “A real bad guy will take it from you.”
The 1st District Court of Appeal’s jurisdiction runs from Gainesville through the Panhandle, but Attorney General James Uthmeier said last week he would not appeal and instructed law enforcement statewide to cease prosecuting open carry cases. The deadline for filing any appeal elapsed Thursday, making the ruling official statewide.
It’s still illegal in Florida to display guns in a rude, careless, angry or threatening manner, the Attorney General said.
Florida was one of only a handful of states that had outlawed a gun owner wearing a pistol on their hip or strapping a rifle over his shoulder and walking on city streets and inside businesses or restaurants where owners don’t object. California, Illinois and New York generally prohibit it; about 10 other states require a permit.
McDaniels deliberately flouted Florida’s open carry ban by standing at a busy Pensacola intersection on the Fourth of July in 2022, waving at cars with a loaded Beretta pistol visibly tucked in his waistband. Holding a copy of the U.S. Constitution in one hand, he said he aimed to challenge the law all the way to the Supreme Court, according to court records. The appeals ruling vacated McDaniels’ conviction and reversed his sentence.
Video from his arrest that day showed McDaniels surrounded by four uniformed police officers, his hands holding the Constitution near his chest, as one of them moved quickly to remove the pistol.
“The secret war being fought with pen and paper in local, state and federal courtrooms has taken a major turn to restore our God-given constitutional rights with recent Supreme Court decisions,” McDaniels said in his jailhouse interview.
Courts have long handed down rulings at the center of consequential civil or constitutional rights cases involving defendants with complicated histories. Larry Flynt, whose legal fight expanded the scope of First Amendment protections, was a controversial pornography publisher. Ernesto Miranda, whose Supreme Court case resulted in new rules that criminal suspects must be informed of their rights before being questioned, had confessed to kidnapping and rape until the court overturned his conviction. Miranda was later stabbed to death in a bar fight.
McDaniels was an avid gun enthusiast. In addition to his Beretta pistol seized after his arrest that day, his collection included at least seven other pistols and at least 13 shotguns and bolt-action and assault-style rifles — all seized by the sheriff during domestic violence investigations in 2023 and 2024.
McDaniels is serving a jail sentence facing misdemeanor charges of domestic violence and violating an injunction involving his ex-wife. She told Sheriff’s deputies he parked his motorcycle last year outside the preschool where she worked and later followed her driving on his motorcycle, despite a court order to stay away. A Judge sentenced him in early September to roughly three months in jail after he wrote her an email discussing their relationship.
McDaniels argued that he emailed his ex-wife’s lawyer to discuss custody issues, but a Judge noted that he addressed the correspondence to his ex-wife directly.
“This is malicious prosecution by the state,” McDaniels told the Judge. “This is malicious prosecution by my ex-wife. How can this really be justice? This is not justice.”
His ex-wife did not return voice messages left with her divorce lawyer or her parents over several days. The phone number listed for her in court and voter registration records was not up to date.
McDaniels had been convicted in 2000 on a felony drug charge of possessing LSD that he intended to sell, according to court records. A felony conviction typically would preclude someone in Florida from owning or buying a gun, but the circuit Judge in that case agreed to withhold adjudication — effectively throwing out the case — if McDaniels complied with terms of his 12 months of probation, including substance abuse therapy and submitting to random drug testing.
Florida law still allows businesses — including Disney World, supermarkets, restaurants and movie theaters — to set their own rules about whether to allow guns to be carried openly on their property. People with guns displayed openly who won’t leave such businesses can be charged with armed trespass.
The ruling doesn’t affect other state and federal limits on carrying guns, such as on school or college campuses, courthouses or federal buildings.
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This story was produced by Fresh Take Florida, a news service of the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications. The reporter can be reached at [email protected]. You can donate to support our students here.
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U.S. Rep. Kat Cammack already knows who she wants to win a newly open race neighboring her own North Florida district.
The Gainesville Republican is endorsing Republican Party of Florida Chair Evan Power to succeed retiring U.S. Rep. Neal Dunn.
“I don’t back candidates who seek permission slips. I back fighters. That’s why I’m proud to endorse Evan Power for Congress,” Cammack said.
“Washington is broken because too many politicians cling to the status quo. Evan isn’t one of them. He’s a proven conservative leader who fights bureaucracy, stands up to the radical left, and wins. I’ve seen him push back against government overreach, defend Florida values, and hold firm under pressure.”
Power, a Tallahassee Republican, filed last week to run in Florida’s 2nd Congressional District a day after Dunn announced he will not seek another term. Cammack first won election in 2020 to Congress to represent Florida’s 3rd Congressional District.
On social media, Power said he was “honored to have the endorsement and support of Kat Cammack.”
It’s an early endorsement for the party leader as other candidates rush to file.
Already, former U.S. Senate candidate Keith Gross filed in the Republican Primary. Other Republicans, including Austin Rogers, the General Counsel for U.S. Sen. Rick Scott, and Chuck Perdue, the Bay County Talk Collector, are exploring runs.
Cammack said Power’s history working on political issues and campaigns led her to publicly support his candidacy.
“Evan doesn’t just talk about freedom, the Constitution, and fiscal responsibility, he delivers. He knows our job is to serve the people, not grow government, appease special interests, or play nice with the swamp,” she said.
“If you want a rubber stamp, look elsewhere. If you want a conservative who will join me to secure the border, protect parents, defend life, back law enforcement, and put America First then Evan Power is the fighter we need in Congress. I’m all in for Evan Power. I hope you are too.”
Aileen Rodriguez, who is challenging Republican Hillsborough County Commissioner Joshua Wostal this election cycle, is officially kicking off her campaign next week.
The event will feature U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor as a special guest, as well as a host committee that includes myriad community stakeholders, ranging from elected officials, business leaders and political activists to current and former candidates for office.
The kickoff is Wednesday, Jan. 28, at J.C. Newman Cigar Company, located at 2701 N. 16th St. in Tampa, from 5:30-7:30 p.m.
Castor endorsed Rodriguez earlier this month, writing in a letter to the candidate that she appreciates “your willingness to step forward and serve your Hillsborough County neighbors.”
“I value your commitment to listening to residents across our community and ensuring that every neighbor, in every neighborhood, has a voice in our county government,” Castor wrote.
“I look forward to working with you on the issues our residents care most about, including greater access to affordable housing, child care, and public transportation. These priorities are critical to responsible growth, environmental preservation and modernizing infrastructure. Together, we can help build a County government that is more accessible, accountable, and truly reflects the people it serves.”
Rodriguez’s honorary host committee includes, among others, Tampa City Council members Alan Clendenin, Lynn Hurtak, Guido Maniscalco and Luis Viera; Hillsborough County School Board members Nadia Combs, Lynn Gray, Karen Perez and Jessica Vaughn; former Hillsborough County Commissioner and former University of South Florida President Betty Castor; former state Sen. Janet Cruz; former Hillsborough County Commissioner Kimberly Overman; and former Tampa City Council member and current Florida House candidate Mike Suarez.
The host committee includes local business leaders and political insiders such as Erin Aebel, Karen Clay, Bryan Farris, Rick Fernandez, Rick Fifer, Andy Johnson, Neil Manimala, Stephanie Poyner, Hoyt Prindle, Taylor Ralph, Michael Reeves, C.L Townsend and others.
Rodriguez, a former regional director for former Republican U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez, filed paperwork last week to run. Rodriguez, a Democrat, is so far the only candidate challenging Wostal.
Rodriguez is a career public relations expert, having run her own PR firm, AR Public Affairs and Strategic Solutions, since 2009. She also worked from 2014 to 2017 as a senior manager of executive affairs for the Hillsborough County Aviation Authority.
Prior to that, she served as marketing communications director for the Helios Education Foundation and Communications Director for the 2012 Tampa Bay Host Committee for the Republican National Convention.
Rodriguez was previously registered as a Republican but changed her political affiliation in 2019, saying the GOP left her and no longer reflected her values as a Christian.
Rodriguez was born in Puerto Rico, a U.S. territory, and raised in the Tampa Bay area. Her campaign will focus largely on the affordability crisis that is plaguing not just Hillsborough County residents, but those throughout the state and nation.
Rodriguez also said she would prioritize infrastructure spending and expanded transportation options to break gridlock in Hillsborough County, calling such moves “common sense.”
District 7 is elected countywide, where Republicans hold a voter registration advantage with nearly 292,000 voters compared to nearly 273,000 Democrats. With another more than 217,000 independent voters, Rodriguez’s experience as both a Republican and Democrat could help bridge the voter registration gap by enticing moderate voters.
That could be especially true in a Midterm Election year expected to favor Democrats amid frustration with federal policies under the Donald Trump administration and GOP trifecta in Washington.
Historically, the party in power in the White House suffers losses in Midterm years, and this year is not expected to be any different. But it’s worth noting that in the last Midterm cycle, in 2022, Republicans overperformed in Florida even as they underperformed elsewhere in the nation.
That was also the same year the Hillsborough County Commission flipped red, with the defeat of two incumbent Democrats, shifting the board from a 5-2 Democratic advantage to a 4-3 Republican majority. Wostal was first elected that year, defeating incumbent Democrat Kimberly Overman with more than 52% of the vote despite being significantly underfunded.
The GOP grew that advantage further in 2024, and the board now has just two Democratic members.
As of the end of 2025, Wostal had already raised more than $108,000 for his race, with only about $1,000 of that spent. Because she only just filed to run, Rodriguez has not yet reported any fundraising.
Two Democrats had previously filed to challenge Wostal: former state Rep. Adam Hattersley and Mark Nash, who has sought office unsuccessfully before. Both have since withdrawn from the race.
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