WMAL Interview - KATHY SZELIGA - 12.13.17

INTERVIEW - MD DELEGATE KATHY SZELIGA (SH-LEG_GAH) - Maryland House of Delegates Minority Whip

TOPIC:

Proposed Bill Would Allow Church Members To Carry Gun (WBAL) -- In response to some recent shootings in places of worship, a newly proposed bill could allow members of churches and other places of worship to carry a gun. The legislation called the Partitioner Protection Act of 2018 would allow any law-abiding member of a church, if they have permission from the church and legally own a fire arm, to carry it on church property during congregation meetings. Delegate Kathy Szeliga, along with Senator Wayne Norman and Sheriff Jeff Gahler are working on the legislation.

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Proposed Bill Would Allow Church Members To Carry Gun Tuesday, December 12, 2017

In response to some recent shootings in places of worship, a newly proposed bill could allow members of churches and other places of worship to carry a gun.

The legislation called the Partitioner Protection Act of 2018 would allow any law-abiding member of a church, if they have permission from the church and legally own a fire arm, to carry it on church property during congregation meetings.

Delegate Kathy Szeliga, along with Senator Wayne Norman and Sheriff Jeff Gahler are working on the legislation.

Szeliga Says not every place of worship does not have to do this, but it may help places where large numbers gather.

"Especially in a rural county where law enforcement may take many many minutes to get to the church, it would allow the church [or a synagogue or mosque] that option."

Szeliga says this is different from other public places where some police officers are on duty or with people are not all with their backs to the door, and that this legislation may need to be looked at by jurisdiction.

"We're going to put [the legislation in] state-wide, but we may have to start out reducing the size of it to being a by county type of thing," Szeliga said. "You look at Baltimore City where their law enforcement presence is so large, versus Harford County...or some of the more rural counties, they don't have a law enforcement branch, they use the state police. So in a county like that, this would be very attractive." http://www.wbal.com/article/282023/21/proposed-bill-would-allow-church-members-to-carry-gun