PORT ST. LUCIE — A new rule adopted by the Tradition Community Association banning the open and concealed carry of firearms in common areas has ignited controversy among some residents and prompted questions about how the policy could be enforced.
The restriction applies to common spaces throughout the community, including the town square, splash pad, dog park, trails, town hall and other shared areas, even for people licensed to carry firearms.
Opponents of the policy argued online that the rule infringes on Second Amendment rights, though legal experts say private associations generally have broader authority to regulate conduct on their property.
Jonathan Marshfield, a law professor at the University of Florida, said constitutional protections such as the Second Amendment typically do not directly apply to private organizations or agreements between private parties.
“Generally speaking, things like the Second Amendment and other federal constitutional rights, they do not apply directly against private associations,” he said. “So, the sort of background default rule is that people can privately agree to do various different things, and the Second Amendment or any right in the Bill of Rights is not a direct limitation on what people can do by private agreement.”
Marshfield said the legal complexity arises when private rules require government involvement to be enforced.
“Those agreements have to be enforced somewhere, and so the Supreme Court has a strong line of cases that prevents state courts and federal courts from enforcing agreements that would violate constitutional rights,” he said.
In a public statement, Port St. Lucie Police Chief Leo Niemczyk said the association’s decision does not represent the position of either the city or the police department.
He also said the policy would not be enforced as a criminal matter by law enforcement, even though property owners are allowed to establish their own rules.
That distinction raises additional uncertainty about how the policy would function in practice.
“That sort of logic is exactly what the United States Supreme Court has applied in these long line of cases where they’ve said, look, you can make these agreements,” Marshfield said. “There’s nothing that we’re going to do to stop you from making these agreements because the constitutional right doesn’t apply to you as a private entity. But at some point, if you want to enforce this against yourselves, you’re going to need the government to enforce it.”
Neither the ordinance adopted by the community nor the letter announcing the policy detailed how violations would be handled.
Attempts to reach HOA officials for comment were unsuccessful.
Port St. Lucie Councilman Anthony Bonna criticized the policy in an online statement, calling it “unenforceable and asinine.”
The restriction does not apply throughout all of Tradition. Firearms remain permitted on private rights of way, sidewalks, inside vehicles and for law enforcement officers.