Habersham County Declared Second Amendment Sanctuary

With unconstitutional gun-control measures—including bans on semi-automatics and gun confiscations—being proposed by presidential candidates and moving through state governments like Virginia, one Georgia county has taken a proactive approach to protecting the rights of its residents.

The Habersham County Board of Commissioners voted Monday evening to proclaim the county a Second Amendment Sanctuary County. Habersham is the first Georgia county to vote itself as a Second Amendment Sanctuary, something that is occurring across Virginia and now is spreading nationwide.

The Habersham County resolution directs Sheriff Joey Terrell to not enforce against any citizen any unconstitutional firearms law.

The resolution reads in part: “No agent, employee or official of Habersham County, or any corporation providing services to Habersham County, shall provide material support or participate in any way with the implementation of federal acts, orders, rules, laws or regulations in violation of the Second Amendment to the United States of America.”

Ironically, the Sanctuary concept was born from liberal municipalities that began to establish “Sanctuary Cities” to defy federal immigration laws. The difference with Second Amendment Sanctuaries is that they are backed by the Constitution, something that was brought out during a public comment period during the Habersham meeting Monday night. According to an article by reporter Rob Moore, of access WDUN, Cornelia attorney Douglas McDonald Sr. spoke against the resolution, saying, “If the law says that guns should be taken, then that’s the law. The law can be changed. That’s what we do in America. We don’t disobey the law; we change the law.”

According to the WDUN article, a resident then stood up to say Mr. McDonald had just wasted his breath because, “If someone tells us that we have to confiscate guns, that is unconstitutional and that is against the law.”

Stacy Hall, Habersham County Board of Commissioners Chair

Habersham County Commission Chairman Stacy Hall issued this statement:

“I am often reminded of an exchange in 1787 when delegates were drafting the Constitution. On the last day of the convention, Ben Franklin emerged from the building when a woman asked him what the founders had given the American people. His answer, “A republic, if you can keep it.”

The words “if you can keep it” offer a distinct reminder to us all that each and every one of us have a part to play in keeping our great republic intact. Certainly, exercising our right to vote is a big part of that. But so too, I believe, is standing up to the government when we believe our Constitutional rights are under attack.

Sadly, there are many in federal, state, and local governments all over our country who do not agree with our second amendment right to keep and bear arms or seek to limit it. It is of paramount importance that we, the people, remind these legislators that their simple dislike or a Constitutional amendment makes it no less Constitutional and that we will not give those right up easily. The Constitution is not an aging, irrelevant document with increasing insignificance over time. Quite the contrary, it is the very fabric that this great country is woven together. It is a living, breathing document that protects us from an overreaching and overbearing government. 

It is with this in mind, the Habersham Board of Commissioners tonight join a growing chorus of communities throughout the United States by considering a 2nd Amendment Sanctuary County Resolution affirming our support of the Constitution and signaling that we will not help enforce any unconstitutional law which seeks to limit our 2nd Amendment rights. Habersham County is proud to be the first county in Georgia to do this.”

Click here to view the Habersham County 2nd Amendment Resolution approved on Jan. 13, 2020.