With the full support of Sheriff Billy Woods, Marion County commissioners voted this week to declare the county a Second Amendment Sanctuary.
The unanimous vote came during Tuesday’s regularly scheduled commission meeting and was brought forth by Chair Kathy Bryant. She asked Woods to speak about the resolution before taking the vote and he made it quite clear that he was in favor of backing the amendment that protects the right to bear arms.
“In the sentiment of what’s going on in the nation now, I think it is vitally important for us to be in the forefront of standing for what is right and standing firmly on the Constitution and the Second Amendment,” he said. “I think it will send a message.”
Woods said he would be happy to see Marion County join with others like Lake County, which was the first in the Sunshine State to become a Second Amendment Sanctuary and was fully supported by Sheriff Peyton Grinnell.
“I think that Marion County will be the light that stands out, along with the other counties in this state, like this great state does of defending the Second Amendment,” Wood said. “And I think it is important.”
Commissioner David Moore agreed.
“Thank you for always putting God first and always putting our Constitution first,” he told Woods.
Commissioner Carl Zalak III said it’s important for Marion County residents to know that every commissioner is a huge supporter of the Second Amendment.
“I think it’s a great way for us as a board to solidify and talk about the freedoms that our Founders guaranteed us,” he said. “And to make sure that the people we represent know that we’re in full support of our Constitution.”
Second Amendment Sanctuaries are jurisdictions that basically take a stand against restrictive gun laws, declare them unconstitutional and promise they won’t be enforced. They largely have been driven by statements made by liberal Democrats like former congressman and presidential hopeful Beto O’Rourke, who infamously said, “Hell yes, we’re going to take your AR-15, your AK-47.”
Besides Florida, states with governmental bodies that have become Second Amendment Sanctuaries include Illinois, Alaska, Idaho, Wyoming, Kansas and the desert city of Needles, Calif.