Florida Shooters Network

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/crime ... 37789.html

Detectives checked leads and tips Tuesday as they continued searching for the gunman who shot two teenagers early Sunday at the crowded South Florida Fair.

A fight broke out at the fairgrounds, west of West Palm Beach, shortly after midnight Sunday, sparking the shooting that injured a girl and a boy, the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office said.

The victims were taken to the hospital with injuries that are not life threatening. The girl has since been released from the hospital, but the boy was still being treated for several gunshot wounds Monday evening at St. Mary's Medical Center, Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Teri Barbera said.

Authorities have released few details about the suspected shooter or why he pulled out a gun. Deputies locked down the sprawling fairgrounds on Southern Boulevard, keeping thousands of people from leaving the fair for up to an hour. During that time, deputies hunted the shooter, whom they described only as a man dressed in black.

The fairgrounds was packed when the fight erupted near Gate 2, on the northeast side of the fair. Online news readers commented about people "screaming in terror" as they ran from the scene.

No one else was injured, and the fairgoers left safely when the lockdown was lifted, Barbera said.

Fair spokesman John Picano said organizers hired an unspecified number of sheriff's deputies to patrol the fairground during the three-week event, as they do every year. Although it's illegal to take firearms into the fair, visitors aren't patted down or searched for weapons when thy enter and bags aren't checked, Picano said.

Fair organizers will meet in the coming weeks to go over possible changes to improve the fair experience in years to come, Picano said. The annual meeting often includes a review of security operations, he said, although it's unclear if organizers have plans to handle security differently.

The fair opened its last day as scheduled at 10 a.m. Sunday, Picano said.

So the organizer says it is illegal to take firearms into the fair. This does not apply to CCW holders, does it?

I don't see it any where in the statutes except MAYBE "any portion of an establishment licensed to dispense alcoholic beverages for consumption".

Yeah I do not see how this is illegal, especially considering that the Florida State Fair hosts the Sun Coast Gun shows all the time

Organizers can say the silliest things sometimes.

I have worked at the SFF for the past 8 years and to the best of my knowledge, CCW at the Fair is not illegal and not off limits in FL Statutes. I do recall them posting "No Firearms" signs a few years ago but I don't remember seeing them recently. If the Fair CEO is saying metal detectors are not the answer then I don't expect to see them next year.

UPDATE:
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/palm-beach/fl-fairgrounds-shooting-arrest-20120202,0,1689093,print.story
7:30 PM EST, February 2, 2012

Gang detectives have arrested a teenager in connection to Sunday's double shooting at the South Florida Fair, a long-time attraction for rival Palm Beach County gangs.

Witnesses of the shooting, which erupted shortly after midnight, said an alleged member of the Monroe Heights Posse Gang pulled out a .22-caliber Ruger pistol and opened fire on another teen and his girlfriend, according to the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office arrest report.

Deputies blocked all fair exits and stopped witnesses as they ran from the scene. The youths eventually helped detectives link the shooting to a 17-year-old boy from Riviera Beach, known as "Rone," the report said. He was at the fair with a girl and another boy, they said.

The teen, whose name is not being released because of his age, was arrested Wednesday evening at his family's home on charges of aggravated battery with a firearm and delinquent in possession of a firearm.

The Sheriff's Office gang unit was at the fair that crowded Saturday night — the last Saturday of its 17-day run — like always, said Rick Vymlatil, chief executive officer of the South Florida Fair. Its members among 50 deputies working that night, some hired by the fair and some working regular patrol, he said.

Although gangs have caused trouble at the fair before, Sunday's shooting was the most violent incident yet, Vymlatil said. Organizers will discuss how to make sure families feel safe next year, he said, but metal detectors aren't the answer.
"If somebody really wants to get a gun onto fairgrounds property, we couldn't prevent it," Vymlatil said. Anyone easily could pass weapons through the chain-link fence surrounding the fair, he said.

The teen arrested in Sunday's shooting reportedly is a student at Palm Beach Gardens High School, a witness told investigators. The victims were leaving the fair when the gunfire erupted, authorities said.

One witnesses heard an argument and saw the suspect pull out the semi-automatic weapon. A person next to him said, "Shoot him," the report said.

The male victim's girlfriend reach out to warn him, but both were gunned down. Someone then handed the male victim a gun, and he fired back, the report said. He then ran to an exit and was stopped by deputies, who ordered him to drop the gun. He did.

The boy was airlifted to St. Mary's Medical Center in West Palm Beach with injuries that are not life threatening. His girlfriend was taken by ambulance to Wellington Regional Medical Center, treated and released.

The South Florida Fair is known turf for gang clashes, and brawls have broken out there in the past. In response, sheriff's deputies have been known to patrol the midway and exits in bullet-resistent vests, looking for gang members.

Youth with color-coded clothing, sporting identical tattoos and speaking in cryptic slang are telltale signs. In 2007, more than 75 gang members were told to leave or were turned away from entering the fair. Law enforcement officials said they have legal discretion to order someone out for threatening behavior.

Sunday's shooting did not discourage fair goers from showing up later that morning for the last day of the fair, Vymlatil said. Attendance was higher that day than it was for the fair's final day in 2011, he said. But organizers still will consider options to improve security next year, he said.
"You certainly don't want to turn the event into an armed compound," Vymlatil said. "But you definitely want people to feel safe."

They want people to feel safe yet spout BS about guns being illegal on fairgrounds???? How have these people not been killed through sheer stupidity? I also love how the police/DA seem to make a skill out of undercharging criminals. The shooter was charged with aggravated battery, what the hell is that, where is the attempted murder charge? You shoot at someone, not in self-defense, it is either murder (if you are a good shot) or attempted murder (if you miss).

Not illegal.

Not illegal at gun shows either, BTW.

Unless it's one of the specific exceptions in the statute, it's legal, despite what someone says.