Court upholds Georgia Ban on Guns in Church

From: The Washington Post

A federal appeals court has upheld Georgia’s ban on bringing guns into places of worship.

The Rev. Jonathan Wilkins, a Baptist pastor, and a gun-rights group had argued that church members should have the right to carry guns into worship services to protect the congregation.

But the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Friday (July 20) that a Georgia law adopted in 2010 does not violate the Thomaston congregation’s First and Second Amendment rights.

Gun-rights advocates might want a weapon for self-defense, but that is a “personal preference, motivated by a secular purpose,” the court ruled.

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Guns in Church Case goes to Federal Appeals Court

From: Gainesville Times

{For decades people have argued over gun rights.

That battle continues to rage in the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals where the gun-rights group GeorgiaCarry.org is hoping to persuade a three-judge panel that a Georgia law banning guns in "places of worship" interferes with the First Amendment guarantee of freedom of religion. Only Georgia, Mississippi, Arkansas and North Dakota prohibit firearms in churches, synagogues and mosques.}

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