Written by Don Byrd
The 11th Circuit turned away a minister’s argument that he has a constitutional right to carry guns in church. Jonathan Wilkins claimed that a Georgia law banning firearms in houses of worship violated his religious freedom rights, but the Appeals Court agreed with the trial court in rejecting his position, on the grounds that while he may have preferred to carry a gun to church, he had not demonstrated his religious beliefs were burdened by the rule. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has more.
[T]he 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals flatly rejected the First Amendment freedom of worship argument, finding that pastor Jonathan Wilkins of the Baptist Tabernacle of Thomaston and the gun rights group GeorgiaCarry.org had not shown how the law interfered with sincerely held religious beliefs.
The three-judge panel noted that, while the lawsuit said worshipers would like to carry firearms for self-defense, “there is no First Amendment protection for personal preferences; nor is there protection for secular beliefs.”
The lawsuit was filed after the Georgia Legislature eliminated a firearms ban at generic “public gatherings” and replaced it with a list of eight specific places.
