With one more than the required thirty-two letters in hand calling for a special session of the Florida Legislature, Secretary of State Ken Detzner has begun to poll remaining members of the House and Senate to determine if there is a three-fifths majority or ninety-six legislators willing to review and address the current flaws in the state’s ‘stand your ground’ law.
Correspondence conducting the poll is currently being distributed to legislators by the Department of State.
All thirty-three letters submitted to Detzner calling for a special session have come from Democrats.
Meanwhile, House Speaker Will Weatherford has said, the Republican-controlled Legislature will vote against holding a special session. And even some Democrats think that this will be a long shot.
Nonetheless, House Democratic Leader Perry Thurston (D-Fort Lauderdale) issued the following statement:
“I commend those members who have joined me in my request for a special session. While the House Speaker has indicated that the Legislature may hold a hearing later this year on certain policies, including Stand Your Ground, I strongly believe that a special session is the best way to justly address the concerns of our constituents. As the Secretary of State begins the polling of the Legislature, I urge my colleagues, Democrats and Republicans alike, to answer in the affirmative to the request.”
Weatherford said, once the final tally is in, protesters camped out at the state Capitol should pack up and leave, according to news reports.
Calling themselves Dream Defenders, protesters have occupied the state Capitol for one month since the acquittal of George Zimmerman, the self-appointed neighborhood watch volunteer, who shot and killed Trayvon Martin, an unarmed black teen. They have also called for a review of Florida’s ‘stand your ground’ and self-defense laws.
Gov. Rick Scott has repeatedly said, he supports the state’s ‘stand your ground’ law.
