State Sen. Charlie Dean is a conservative, an outdoorsman, an NRA member, gun owner and avid supporter
of the Second Amendment.
In his opinion, however, the “Guns at Work” bill now being embraced by many in the state Legislature
should be shot down. That bill would deny business owners the right to prevent employees from keeping
firearms in their vehicles while parked at work.
Dean’s logic is 100 percent sound. Business owners’ private property rights shouldn’t be secondary to
the rights of employees when they’re on company property.
In explaining the awkward position he has found himself in, Dean said, “Don’t put me between property
rights and Second Amendment rights.”
For the third straight year, that’s exactly where bill proponents are putting Dean and his fellow
lawmakers. The fact that so many legislators are lining up behind the measure this year should make all
who are concerned about private property rights nervous and curious.
In this squaring-off of two prized constitutional rights, one must ask which right is greater. As
countless court cases have proven, no constitutional right is absolute — the government can take away
private property through eminent domain and the right to bear arms does not include selling bazookas to
children.
In the case of the Guns at Work bill, denying business owners the authority to determine what they’ll
allow on their property — by individuals who are willingly employed by the business and who park on
land leased or owned by the business — is inexplicable.
This bill is a case of the government robbing private property rights from employers. An employer
deserves the right to manage property in the fashion deemed most appropriate. Employees aren’t slaves
to any company and can work elsewhere if the terms of employment are unacceptable.
Voters need to deliver that message loud and clear to state legislators, House and Senate leaders and
the governor. Don’t let heavily lobbied Tallahassee lawmakers strip business owners of the right to
control their own property.
Political advertisement paid for and approved by Charles Dean,
Republican for State Senate, District 3
301 West Main Street l Inverness, FL 34450 l 352-560-6184
