Handguns seized at Orlando airport from Florida concealed weapons permit holders

61-year-old Stephen Miley admitted that he had a handgun in his carry-on bag when stopped by TSA officers at the Orlando International Airport. According to the arrest report he said "he did not mean to bring his gun into the checkpoint" and "he produced a State of Florida concealed weapon permit." Miley was arrested and charged with carrying a firearm in a place prohibited by law.
According to airport officials, the majority of people arrested for carrying firearms in their carry-on luggage have state concealed weapons permits. So far this year 23 guns have been seized at the Orlando airport, 26 guns each have been seized at Tampa and Fort Lauderdale and 15 each at Jacksonville and Miami.
Nationwide, the TSA has reported a 30 percent increase over the same period last year of passengers trying to go through security with guns. Last year TSA found 1,549 firearms on passengers, which was up 17 percent from the year before.
The most common excuse offered by passengers is "I forgot it was there." But if someone is given a permit to carry a loaded, hidden handgun in public don't they also have an obligation to know where that gun is at all times? To forget where your loaded, unlocked handgun is is inexcusable.
Jimmy Taylor, a sociology professor who writes about the nation's gun culture, finds it hard to believe airline passengers forget they're carrying guns. "My wife and I check on things like eye drops and Chapstick to see if we're allowed to take them on a plane, so it's a little difficult to imagine that you aren't checking the policies about your loaded firearm before you get to the airport."

Man who once pulled gun on meter reader shoots and kills door-to-door salesman

Kenneth Roop, 52 of Cape Coral, Florida told detectives that the man he shot should have respected his three "No Trespassing" signs and that the reason he didn't warn the victim to get off his property was because "I'm not going to give him the chance to do something to me, I was in fear."
30-year-old Nick Rainey, an employee of Blue Ribbon Steak and Seafood,was going door to door selling products. A co-worked who witnessed the shooting said Rainey had knocked on Roop's door but received no answer. He was walking back down the driveway when Roop pullled up in his pickup truck.
The two men had a brief conversation and then Roop pulled out a black handgun and shot Rainey. As Rainey lay on the ground, Roop fired another bullet into the back of his head. Roop told police that he was in fear and thought Rainey was reaching for something and he shot him in the head "for effect."
An off-duty sheriff's deputy who lives in the neighborhood held Roop at gunpoint until the local police arrived.
A former state prosecutor, Ray Sotomayor, called Roop a "time bomb" who "had a screw loose." Sotomayor was the prosecutor in a case against Roop seven years ago when he was accused of pointing a gun at a woman who simply wanted to read his electric meter. He said Roop's attitude was similar to "militia-minded, anti-government" types and that he was obsessed with the idea of guarding his home.
Roop was found not guilty by a jury.
Roop told police he thinks he has about 14 firearms. He also has a valid concealed weapons permit.

Teen goes on shooting rampage with legally owned AK-47

18-year-old David Penney of St. Cloud, Florida is an angry young man. According to police Penney left a six-page letter expressing rage at the world and himself, dressed in military fatigues, combat boots, a tactical vest for carrying multiple ammunition magazines, picked up two AK-47s, more than 100 rounds of ammunition and drove to a friend's home. He was upset over a car crash that had damaged his vehicle in September. Penney stood in the street and emptied several 30-round magazines into the home. Fortunately, no one was injured.
Police soon arrived on the scene and Penney started shooting at the officers. Both of the officers sustained injuries, one was shot in the foot, the other was hit in the face with flying glass when a round came through the windshield. But according to the St. Cloud police chief, the quick actions on the part of his officers forced Penney to retreat and ultimately, he shot himself.
Penney shot himself in the chin and was listed in critical condition at a local hospital but he is expected to survive.
Classmates said Penney was really into guns and war. A police officer who worked at Penney's school described the youth as very reserved, expect when he was discussing his fascination with firearms. In addition to the note found in his room police also found a drum magazine for an AK-47 loaded with an many an 100 rounds.
According to police, Penney owned the guns legally and has no criminal record. It is legal under federal law and Florida state law for an 18-year-old to purchase an AK-47. There is no licensing requirement, no registration requirement, nor is there a waiting period.
"On occasion, these strained young men, as far as where they are with their mental state, have the ability to purchase these guns," said the police chief.
"It could have been much much worse," he continued. "It could have been involving a neighborhood. It could have been involving a school. It could have been involving a shopping center or something way off the charts."

Man arrested with gun at Orlando Airport

51-year-old David Freeman, of Lake Mary, Florida was arrested at Orlando International Airport after screeners found a loaded .380-caliber Ruger handgun in his carry-on luggage. Freeman, a law abiding citizen who has a concealed weapons permit for the gun, told authorities he forgot he had the gun in his bag. Freeman was arrested and charged with carrying a firearm in a prohibited place. His gun was confiscated.
Someone who doesn't remember that they are carrying a loaded handgun does not deserve to have a concealed weapons permit.

Mother shoots her two children because they were "mouthy and talked back"

50-year-old Julie Powers Schenecker has been charged with the brutal shooting deaths of her two children. Schenecker alleged shot her children because they were "mouthy and talked back."

According to police reports Schenecker bought a .38-caliber revolver five days before the murders. She allegedly shot her 13-year-old son, Beau, twice in the head on the way to soccer practice for "talking back." She then allegedly drove to their home and shot her 16-year-old daughter, Carlyx, in the face as she sat in front of her computer studying.
Friends and neighbors were shocked by the murders. According to police records, Schenecker was a law abiding citizen with no criminal history. In November she was in a traffic accident in which she was cited for careless driving.
Schenecker's husband is a U.S. Army intelligence officer and was on assignment in the Middle East at the time of the shootings.
The Florida mother was hospitalized after the shootings but has since been released from the hospital and returned to jail.