TAMPA — Lawyers for the Tampa Police Department want to bar Elvis Piggott from accessing firearms after the ex-City Council candidate was accused of pulling a gun at an election forum.
In a petition filed in court this week, city attorneys asked a judge to impose a risk protection order that would require Piggott,37, to turn over any guns he owns and prohibit him from accessing firearms for up to a year.
Reached by phone Wednesday, Piggott told the Tampa Bay Times that he will contest the petition in court, but he hung up before a reporter could ask further questions.
The petition includes a line alleging that Piggott “may be seriously mentally ill or may have recurring mental health issues.” It indicates that he does not hold a concealed weapons license.
The document includes a police report detailing the investigation into the Oct. 9 incident.
Several people reported Piggott pulled a gun during an argument with a family member of Naya Young, who is competing against Thomas Scott in the runoff election for City Council District 5. The redacted report does not identify the victim or witnesses by name.
In social media posts since the incident, Piggott has asserted that he acted in self-defense.
An arrest warrant issued Tuesday charged Piggott with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and improper exhibition of a dangerous weapon. He turned himself in Tuesday afternoon at the Orient Road Jail. He was released less than an hour later after posting $5,500 bond.
In the jail parking lot, he recorded aFacebook Live video in which he called himself a “proud African American Republican.”
“We have a right to bear arm(s),” he said. “We believe in the Second Amendment. And I believe in that wholeheartedly. I also believe that every individual should keep themselves and their families safe at all costs. … And when it comes to my wife and my kids, I believe wholeheartedly that you should stand your ground.”
The last statement is an apparent reference to Florida’s stand your ground law. Passed in 2005, the law removed the duty to retreat from traditional self-defense law. Critics have derided it as offering a way out of trouble for people who commit violent acts.
In a statement after Piggott’s arrest, Young thanked law enforcement and prosecutors for “pursuing justice.”
Piggott has previously run for Hillsborough County’s commission and school board. He was one of 14 candidates to vie for the District 5 seat, which opened in June after the death of council member Gwen Henderson.
Piggott came in eighth place in the Sept. 9 special election, drawing less than 5% of the vote. He then became a vocal supporter of Scott in the runoff with Young.
The police report depicts a tense and chaotic situation that erupted shortly before 8 p.m. Oct. 9 amid a large crowd inside a ballroom. It happened at an event hosted by the Tampa Heights Junior Civic Association.
Police were called after a report of a “fight with weapons.” Someone identified Piggott as being armed with a gun.
Officers spotted Piggott walking toward them shortly after they arrived. He was placed in handcuffs. A loaded black Taurus 9 mm handgun was tucked in his waistband.
Piggott told the officers he’d gotten into an argument with someone from Young’s family. He said the argument had to do with a Facebook Live post he’d made in which he urged his supporters to vote for Scott, according to the report.
During the campaign forum, the man approached and got “in his face,” Piggott told police.
As an argument ensued, Piggott said the man pointed his finger, then touched Piggott’s head, according to the report. Piggott pulled his gun, he said, and held it at his side.
“Don’t put your hands on me,” he said he told the man. “If you put your hands on me, your momma will be burying you.”
Two security officers working the venue each caught snippets of the interaction. One recalled hearing people scream, “He’s got a gun!” He saw Piggott holding a weapon at his side, according to the report. The other did not see Piggott with a weapon, but heard him say, “I’m gonna bury you.”
Bystanders intervened, separating the men.
A witness, whose name was also redacted from the report, described seeing a man approach Piggott from behind as he interacted with other attendees before the argument. The pair at one point were “chest to chest,” the witness said.
Other people escorted the man out. The witness told police they did not see the man put his hands on Piggott, nor did they see Piggott draw a weapon. Several others, though, reported seeing Piggott pull a gun. Another described Piggott as the aggressor, saying he pulled the weapon “for no reason” and started “waving the gun around.”
Officers located a man they described in the report as the victim. An arrest affidavit summarizes his version of events, saying Piggott first pointed a finger at him before the victim raised a hand to wave it away. It was then that the gun came out.
The man said the act made him “fear for his life,” but also told police he did not want to press charges. Because of that, officers initially let Piggott go. He was given back his gun.
Within hours of the incident, Piggott started a Facebook Live video. He said he acted in self-defenseand spoke disparagingly of Young and her family.
“You cannot put your hands on no one unless you’re planning to meet the maker,” he said in the video.
He later added, “I’m almost glad he did all that in the building and not tried to step down on me outside when I’m going to my car and it’s dark. I would’ve killed him.”
The video was later deleted.
The police report indicates that a witness later told police about an encounter that occurred afterward. The witness claimed Piggott made a derogatory remark about him and that “he knew where to find him and was going to go see him,” according to the report. He said Piggott accused him of putting “his goons” on him and said he was “going to make sure (the witness) lost his job at the school district.”
“You’re going to get it,” the witness said he was told.
Risk protection orders, sometimes referred to as “red flag” orders, are a legal mechanism designed to bar a person from accessing guns if they are believed to pose a threat to themselves or others.
They were one of several measures Florida lawmakers took to address gun violence after the 2017 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.
Republicans and Democrats both have credited risk protection orders with preventing acts of violence. Some gun rights advocates, though, oppose them on the grounds that they could infringe on constitutional rights.
Gov. Ron DeSantis earlier this year lent his voice to the opposition, raising the idea of repealing the law. At the same time, he enacted legislation that sped up the process of courts transmitting the orders to law enforcement.
The aggravated assault charge — the more serious of the two alleged crimes — is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison. If convicted of that crime, Piggott would be prohibited from legally possessing guns for life.
On Tuesday, Hillsborough Circuit Judge Caroline Tesche Arkin issued a temporary order for Piggott to surrender to police all his guns and ammunition. A court hearing is set for Friday to determine if he has complied with the order.
Another hearing next week will determine if the order should become permanent, which could bar Piggott from having guns for a year.
Times staff writer Nina Moske contributed to this report.