Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis — who is running for the GOP nomination for president, who has loosened gun laws in Florida and who has antagonized civil rights leaders by deriding “wokeness " — was loudly booed as he addressed the vigil.
Ju’Coby Pittman, a Jacksonville city councilwoman who represents the neighborhood where the shooting happened, stepped in to ask the crowd to listen.
“What he did is totally unacceptable in the state of Florida,” DeSantis said.
He was the 33rd murder victim in the 27 years Guns has been there, he said.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, center and his wife Casey, right, bow their heads during a prayer at a vigil for the victims of Saturday’s mass shooting Sunday, Aug. 27, 2023, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux).
“In two weeks I have to preach a funeral of a man who should still be alive,” Guns said.
The latest in a long history of American racist killings unfolded early Saturday afternoon after Palmeter first parked at Edward Waters University. »