Following FSU shooting, students call on lawmakers to block effort to lower gun-buying law

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Student survivors of last week’s deadly shooting at Florida State University urged state legislators Tuesday to block an effort to reverse a law passed after the 2018 Parkland school shooting that raised the state's gun-buying age from 18 to 21.

Days after a gunman terrorized the university in the state capital of Tallahassee, students traveled to the Capitol to call on lawmakers to take action to protect them from gun violence.

“When I transferred to Florida State University just last fall, I never thought I’d find myself locked inside a classroom, texting loved ones, unsure if I’d ever see them again,” said Andres Perez, a 20-year-old junior and president of the school’s chapter of Students Demand Action.

“We owe it to the victims, not just here at Florida State University, but across Florida and across our nation, to make sure that this doesn’t happen again,” Perez said.

Thursday's shooting killed two men who were not students and injured six others on FSU's campus, about one mile (1.6 kilometers) from the Capitol building, where lawmakers are in the final weeks of their annual session.

Investigators have said the student suspect in the FSU shooting, 20-year-old Phoenix Ikner, used the former service weapon of his stepmother, a sheriff’s deputy, to carry out the shooting. Ikner was shot and wounded by police, but is expected to survive.

The student remains hospitalized and won’t be formally charged until he is released, Tallahassee Police Department spokesman Lt. Damon Miller Jr. said Tuesday. “We don’t have a timeline on that,” Miller said in a phone interview.

As of Tuesday afternoon, five of the patients who suffered gunshot wounds have been discharged from Tallahassee Memorial Hospital while one is still hospitalized and is in “good condition,” according to TMH spokesperson Sarah Cannon. Hospital officials would not confirm the identity of the patient, citing patient privacy laws.

On Tuesday, FSU students stood alongside Democratic members of the state House of Representatives in the Capitol rotunda and recounted sending what they feared would be their final messages to family members, whispering “I love you” into their phones as they huddled in darkened classrooms.

“We built barricades that day with nothing but chairs,” said Natanel Mizrahi, a 22-year-old senior. “There were no locks on our doors. So instead, brave students stood near the entrance with more chairs to try and do anything that they could to stop a would-be attacker.”

The students called on lawmakers to reject the push to allow adults under age 21 to buy firearms, to ensure college classrooms have door locks, and to allocate funding for campus mental health resources and active shooter training.

In a statement, FSU spokesperson Amy Farnum-Patronis said active shooter training is optional and open to all students and employees, but is not currently mandatory for employees.

"Ensuring the safety and well-being of our campus community remains our foremost priority. Florida State University is continually reviewing and assessing our security protocols, including evaluating door locks, to ensure the safety of everyone on campus," Farnum-Patronis said.

For some FSU students, it wasn't the first time they have been traumatized by a school shooting. For a small group, the sight of abandoned laptops and bookbags left behind by students fleeing for their lives was a grim reminder of the shooting they survived at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, where 17 people were killed and 17 others were injured.

After that shooting, student survivors and grieving families crowded Florida's capitol in an extraordinary lobbying effort, successfully pushing the Republican-run Legislature to pass new gun control measures.

This session, lawmakers have been considering bills to expand gun rights and roll back some restrictions, including lowering the gun-buying age. Gov. Ron DeSantis and some Republican lawmakers have backed the measure, saying that if a person is old enough to be in the military, they should be able to purchase a gun.

Though the bill has the support of House Speaker Daniel Perez, Senate President Ben Albritton had been more hesitant about the measure even before the shooting at FSU.

Speaking with reporters in March, Albritton became emotional recounting his visit to the Parkland high school building. He said he is a lifetime member of the National Rifle Association but that he has not made a decision on the measure.

This story has been corrected to reflect the 2018 law raised the legal age for gun purchases to 21. A previous version stated the law had lowered the gun-buying age.

Associated Press writers Curt Anderson in Tampa and Stephany Matat in West Palm Beach contributed to this report. Payne is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

Madalyn Propst, a 19-year-old freshman at Florida State University, speaks at a news conference in the state capitol in Tallahassee, Fla. alongside Democratic lawmakers on Tuesday, April 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Kate Payne)

Florida State University Student Union building after campus is closed following a shooting, in Tallahassee, Fla., Thursday, April 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Gary McCullough)

An impromptu memorial shared online brings students bearing flowers into the evening near the center of the Florida State campus in sight of the Student Union building, Tallahassee, Fla., Thursday, April 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Gary McCullough)

Natanel Mizrahi, a 22-year-old junior at Florida State University, speaks at a news conference in the state capitol in Tallahassee, Fla. alongside Democratic lawmakers on Tuesday, April 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Kate Payne)

A student places flowers near the Florida State Student Union building, Tallahassee, Fla., Friday, April 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Gary McCullough)

Andres Perez, a 20-year-old junior at Florida State University, speaks at a nes conference in the state capitol in Tallahassee, Fla. alongside Democratic lawmakers on Tuesday, April 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Kate Payne)

Florida House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell speaks at a news conference in the state capitol in Tallahassee, Fla., Tuesday, April 22, 2025, alongside Democratic lawmakers and Florida State University students affected by the April 17, 2025 shooting on the school's campus. (AP Photo/Kate Payne)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo blocked a shot by LeBron James and stole the ball from him on consecutive possessions in the final minute, and the Milwaukee Bucks blew a fourth-quarter lead before rallying for a 105-101 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night.

Kevin Porter Jr. scored 22 points, and he hit two free throws to break a tie after Antetokounmpo blocked a driving layup attempt by James with 39 seconds left.

Antetokounmpo then knocked the ball out of James' hands from behind with 2 seconds left, and Porter hit two more free throws to seal Milwaukee's fifth win in seven games — its first over a team with a winning record since Dec. 11. Antetokounmpo finished with 21 points in his lowest-scoring effort since returning from his right calf strain.

Luka Doncic had 24 points and nine assists on 8-of-25 shooting for the Lakers. He had his lowest-scoring performance since Christmas, and he fouled out on Porter's 3-point attempt with 16.2 seconds to play.

James had 26 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds, but Antetokoumpo got the best of the top scorer in NBA history at crunch time. Los Angeles has lost six of 10.

Milwaukee surged to a double-digit lead in the first half even with Antetokounmpo on a minutes restriction in his injury return. Doncic scored 12 points in the third quarter but also committed four fouls in the period, including his fifth of the game.

Los Angeles abruptly erased its deficit by going on a 17-4 run to open the fourth, with James putting the Lakers ahead when he stole the ball from Antetokounmpo for a layup with 6:02 left. Milwaukee missed nine of its first 12 shots in the period, but Porter's layup tied it with two minutes left.

Lakers starters Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura remain sidelined by injury, but Hachimura (calf) might return early next week from his six-game absence, coach JJ Redick said.

Bucks: At Denver on Sunday.

Lakers: At Sacramento on Monday.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA

Los Angeles Lakers guard Marcus Smart, left, tries to shoot as Milwaukee Bucks guard Gary Trent Jr. defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic, left, and Milwaukee Bucks guard Kevin Porter Jr. go after a loose ball during the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)