JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A civil rights attorney is weighing in on an incident involving a Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office officer that left a man with a bullet hole in his leg after the gun he was carrying fired while the officer tried to remove it from his waist.
“The officer must justify her legal basis for conducting that seizure. I don’t think she has one,” civil rights attorney Eric Friday said.
According to JSO, the Friday night incident happened during a traffic stop. Police said the man ran a red light, causing the officer to pull him over.
He told the officer that he had a gun and complied with the officer’s instructions to get out of the car.
While the officer was attempting to remove the gun from the man’s waist, it fired, and the bullet struck him in the leg, JSO said.
Friday specializes in gun rights and is not affiliated with this case. He explained how gun law works in Florida and what are driver’s rights when it comes to having a legal firearm and dealing with law enforcement.
“In Florida, there is no obligation to inform law enforcement that you are armed with a firearm or any other weapon,” Friday said.
He said it is a driver’s choice to disclose whether they have a weapon in the car, but advised that it’s best not to use the word “gun” when speaking to police.
“Gun is something they call out to other officers when there is a problem so if I have to disclose, I will use the term firearm,” Friday said.
He also said keeping your auto insurance information in a glove box where you store your gun is not a good idea.
“You need to let the officer know that where you have to reach to get your paperwork also has a gun in that same place,” Friday said.
If you are legally armed and an officer asks you to step outside the vehicle, here’s what Friday suggests you do:
“I’m going to let them know before I get out of the car, ‘Officer, I am armed. My firearm is on my right hip,’ but my hands are going to be visible and away from that area of my body,” Friday said.
News4JAX Crime and Safety Analyst Tom Hackney had additional instructions as well.
“If you’re getting pulled over, day or night, roll all four windows down so the officer can see in the car. Turn the inside light on, especially at night,” Hackney said. “Then, hands on the wheel.”
Hackney said those actions would allow the officer to feel like they had more control during the traffic stop.
Friday acknowledged that there was a time when it was best for people to alert the police about any firearms that may be in their possession, but said it’s ill-advised unless you’re asked to get out of the car.
“We’ve seen too many of these situations now. They don’t always result in somebody being shot, but they result in officers overreacting, taking guns apart, unloading them and then you’re left defenseless after the officer leaves.”
Friday also said the officer involved in the incident could say she needed to remove the driver’s gun for her safety, but she would have to explain what led to her suspicion of danger.
If she couldn’t explain that, Friday said her actions could be considered an illegal seizure of property.
News4JAX reached out to JSO for an interview, but they declined due to the ongoing investigation.
We also requested bodycam footage from that night and JSO said the video was unavailable at this time.