Florida Arrests Texan for Selling FRTs Under 2018 Bump-Stock Law
Palm Beach County deputies arrested Skyeler "Bleau" Jackson, a 24-year-old San Antonio man, in February for selling forced reset triggers at a West Palm Beach gun show. Prosecutors charged him under Florida's 2018 bump-stock statute, Section 790.222. Jackson says he is the first person ever charged under that law. He spent nine days in the Palm Beach County jail before his bond dropped from $175,000 to $70,000. The case turns on a simple question the state has never answered: does a law written for bump stocks cover a trigger that federal regulators no longer treat as a machinegun? The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office has not returned calls or emails about it.
Key Details
The charges against Jackson come from two counts of possessing a bump stock. A third count, possessing a firearm during a felony, was dropped. Each count carries exposure to prison time and fines, and Jackson says the court told him the maximum is 10 years and $10,000.
- Defendant: Skyeler "Bleau" Jackson, 24, native Texan living in San Antonio
- Arrest date: February 11, after a traffic stop in his father's car near the gun show
- Alleged offense: selling FRTs to undercover deputies at a West Palm Beach gun show in early February
- Statute: Florida 790.222, the "bump-fire stock" provision
- Jail time: nine days in Palm Beach County custody
- Bond: initially $175,000, negotiated down to $70,000
- Evidence cited by deputies: a booth video showing how the triggers work, and claims that Jackson called them easy to install
Jackson says he showed the undercover deputies documents on his phone that supported the legality of the triggers. Deputies reportedly recorded the sale on video, though Jackson's account indicates he has not seen that footage. Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, 78, has 53 years in law enforcement and is a registered Democrat. The Florida statute bans bump-fire stocks and any device that alters a firearm's rate of fire to mimic automatic fire.
Background
Florida passed Section 790.222 in 2018 as part of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Act, signed by then-Governor Rick Scott after the Parkland shooting. The law targeted bump stocks, the accessories used in the 2017 Las Vegas attack. The Supreme Court later ruled in Garland v. Cargill in 2024 that bump stocks do not qualify as machineguns under federal law, a 6-3 decision that struck down the federal ban. Florida's ban stayed on the books.
Forced reset triggers followed a separate federal fight. ATF classified FRTs as machineguns in 2023, and gun makers challenged that position in court. In 2025, the Justice Department settled one of those suits, and ATF moved away from treating FRTs as machineguns. Florida lawmakers introduced a bill last session to repeal Section 790.222. That bill died in the House Criminal Justice Subcommittee, which left the statute untouched.
Why It Matters for Gun Owners
Florida now sits in an odd position. A federal agency has stepped back from calling FRTs machineguns, yet a state statute written in 2018 still lets prosecutors reach them. Any Florida owner with an FRT, a trigger shipped in from Texas, or a dealer's table at a gun show faces that gap. The arrest also shows that the statute carries felony exposure, not just a civil penalty. Jackson's case is the first test of whether the law covers FRTs at all, and that answer will come from a courtroom, not a legislature.
If you own an FRT in Florida, leave it out of the state unless you have checked with a Florida criminal defense attorney. Keep receipts, manufacturer documentation, and the ATF determination letters you rely on. Do not sell or trade triggers at Florida shows until the courts settle the question. Watch the next Florida legislative session for any repeal bill, and watch Jackson's case docket for any motion to dismiss on vagueness grounds.
DownRange Analysis
Under Bruen, the state must justify its regulation by pointing to a historical tradition of similar restrictions. Florida's statute does not name FRTs. It bans devices that "mimic" automatic fire or increase the rate of fire faster than a person can manage unassisted. That language is vague, and vagueness is a due process problem before it becomes a Second Amendment problem. A prosecutor who has to guess whether a trigger mimics automatic fire is a prosecutor who can charge anyone. Historical analogues for regulating a trigger's mechanical action are thin, and the state will struggle to show them.
The market impact is immediate. Florida FRT sales will drop as dealers wait for a ruling. Buyers should assume that a Florida arrest can follow an out-of-state purchase. Do not wait on the federal position to protect you. Read the state statute, keep your paperwork, and keep the triggers at home until a Florida court says what Section 790.222 means.
