A Florida appeals court has kicked a major hole in the state's gun restrictions, ruling that adults ages 18 to 20 cannot be barred from carrying concealed firearms. The Fourth District Court of Appeal tossed the concealed-carry conviction of an 18-year-old Broward County man and held that 18 to 20 year olds are part of "the people" protected by the Second Amendment. The decision could quickly widen who is allowed to carry concealed across Florida while the case moves through rehearing or further appeal.
What the court held
The three-judge panel concluded that section 790.06(2)(b), the provision that keeps people under 21 from meeting Florida's concealed-carry criteria, is "facially unconstitutional" as applied to 18 to 20 year olds, according to the Fourth District opinion. The court found that the state did not show a historical tradition of stopping that age group from carrying firearms for self-defense. As a result, it reversed and vacated the defendant's concealed-carry conviction and sent the case back to the trial court with instructions.
AG and state response
Attorney General James Uthmeier took a quick victory lap on X, saying the court agreed with his office's position and that his team will coordinate with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to carry out the order, as reported by WPEC/CBS12. His post caps months of litigation over Florida's post-Parkland gun laws and a series of shifting enforcement memos that have left county prosecutors and law enforcement guessing where the lines really are.
Legal next steps
The case is captioned Eubanks v. State, No. 4D2025-1698, and carries the standard caution that it is "Not final until disposition of timely-filed motion for rehearing," according to the Fourth District opinion. If a rehearing is requested and denied, the losing side can ask the Florida Supreme Court to review the ruling or seek other appellate relief. Those choices will determine when and how the decision hardens into statewide precedent.
Background
The appeal stems from a 2024 arrest in Broward County and builds on an October 2025 ruling by Broward Circuit Judge Frank Ledee, who also found the concealed-carry age restriction unconstitutional, according to WUSF/News Service of Florida. That local decision, combined with a separate appellate ruling last fall that struck down Florida's open-carry ban, has already stirred up a fair amount of confusion over what, exactly, the state can enforce when it comes to carrying firearms.
Legal implications
The appeals court took aim at the licensing requirement in section 790.06(2)(b), not the Parkland-era restrictions on purchasing firearms. Still, legal observers note that a run of favorable decisions for gun-rights plaintiffs could push lawmakers and regulators to revisit age-based limits and could invite more constitutional challenges. For now, the immediate effect is limited: the court vacated the appellant's conviction and remanded the case, while bigger questions about how the state will handle enforcement and licensing are still very much in flux.
What to watch
Next up, look for any motion for rehearing, responses from the Broward state attorney or the Attorney General's office, and direction from the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services on whether it will begin processing permit applications from 18 to 20 year olds, according to WPEC/CBS12. If the Florida Supreme Court agrees to take the case, that court will ultimately decide whether the age limit survives in any form statewide. Until then, counties could diverge in how they treat similar cases, leaving young adults and law enforcement navigating a patchwork of interpretations.
