In 2017, Nikolas Cruz—an 18-year-old with a history of mental health issues from Parkland, Florida—legally purchased a semi-automatic rifle.
He was known for threatening other students and transferred schools multiple times for disciplinary reasons.
The following year, Cruz walked into the last high school from which he was expelled from with that firearm, terrorizing the halls of the school and killing 17 innocent people, including students and teachers.
The Sun Sentinel reported that in part the unpreparedness of the school’s security contributed to the losses during the shooting, as it did for other cases like Sandy Hook in 2012.
Because Florida was severely affected by the shooting, the state passed the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act, which changed the minimum gun purchase age to 21.
Since then, the Florida House of Representatives has passed repeal bills in 2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026 to lower the gun purchase age back to 18. But, they always die in the Senate.
Although the Parkland shooting definitely left its mark in Florida schools, that was not the first time someone under 21 purchased a gun with the wrong intentions.
According to the Crime Prevention Research Center between 1998 and 2018, 10 out of 64 public mass shootings involved perpetrators under 21.
The main factor that prevents that number from rising even more is the Florida Statute that established the age restriction. But Florida lawmakers fight every year to modify that law.
If such a bill is passed, Florida would lose one of its strongest safety protections and students will once again fear going to school.
The debate over gun age limits could potentially lead to reevaluating other laws that address the age limit to purchase alcohol or tobacco.
Some argue that keeping the gun purchase limit at 21 violates the second amendment—the right to bear arms. However, courts argue that this is not a violation as such restrictions can be justified based on public safety concerns.
In National Rifle Association v. Bondi, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Florida’s law restricting firearm purchases to individuals under 21, ruling that age-based firearm regulations are consistent with the nation’s historical tradition of gun regulation and do not violate the Second Amendment.
Our government is not taking away our second amendment right, they are providing the necessary regulations to ensure it is being used safely.
As a society, we can’t guarantee that every individual is equipped or willing to use guns appropriately. Having this law can help prevent the consequences of this kind of uncertainty.
That is why being at least 21 to purchase a gun should not be up for debate, it should be a law that remains forever.
