Authorities say the shooter who killed five people in Florida鈥檚 Fort Lauderdale鈥揌ollywood International Airport may have used a gun from his checked luggage.
The gunman opened fire in a baggage area of the airport, and would not have had to break any laws to get his firearm.
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U.S. regulations permit airline passengers to carry guns and ammunition as long as they are stowed in a checked bag. Guns are required to be locked in hard-sided cases. Ammunition must be packed separately in the manufacturer鈥檚 box -- not loaded in magazines.
Passengers cannot regain access until they claim their luggage after landing.
Retired New York City Police Department officer John Cardillo told 愛污传媒 Channel, 鈥�(It鈥檚) a few second process to get it out of your luggage and load it once it comes off the (baggage) carousel.鈥�
Cardillo says gun license requirements in certain states, such as Alaska and Florida, make obtaining the necessary credentials fairly easy for most residents.
鈥淎laska is what we call a 鈥榗onstitutional carry鈥� state, requiring no license to carry. Here in Florida, we are what we call a 鈥榮hall issue鈥� state, meaning that if you have a clean criminal background, the state cannot deny you the license to carry a firearm,鈥� he said. 鈥淎bsolutely no laws were broken here. I do it all the time.鈥�
No prevention measures
While airport security has undergone massive upgrades in the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks, CTV鈥檚 public safety analyst Chris Lewis says those extra measures are primarily aimed at individuals boarding flights, not departing passengers or people waiting in common areas.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e not checked. There is no security screening. Nor do we really want that kind of tightness around our day-to-day interactions,鈥� he said.
Lewis says little can be done to prevent someone from opening fire inside an airport so long as firearms are returned at baggage pickup.
鈥淚f that doesn鈥檛 change then there is nothing to prevent that,鈥� he said. 鈥淯nless you have armed security standing there watching people pick up their bags and leave the airport.鈥�
