Here's the rub. The executed the SEARCH warrent with the SWAT team. So it's clear the executed as a high rish warrant. A high risk warrant can be executed during NON-DAYLIGHT hours, and occassionally without a knock at the door. It doesn't sound like there was a knock at the door in this case. Normally warrants must be executed during daylight hours, preceeded by a knock at the door etc.
Now here is where it gets tricky because it sounds to me like they decided to serve this as a high risk SEARCH warrant, because they guy had a gun legally registered in his name. So it all boils down to whether or not they identified themeselves as police officers when they entered the door and whether he understood/believed that they were. Because as many a FReeper knows when someone kicks in your door at 6 AM in the morning your likely to go for your gun.
People that deal drugs in paticular are likely to reach for the gun, because as any moderately successful drug dealer will tell you, your bigger risk factor is NOT GETTING BUSTED. IT'S GETTING ROBBED.
My conclusion is they should have detained the suspect when he came outside during daylight hours, and then preceded to search the house. They shouldn't be kicking in peoples doors at night to execute a search warrant based on the fact that they have a legally registered firearm in their name.
one flaw, respectfully. It was based on the CCW license. FL does not register guns.