Catoosa County resident Ray Blankenship is concerned about state and federal laws regarding universal gun background checks, person-to-person sales and restrictions on high-capacity magazines and assault rifles.
Over the past few months, he’s taken to petitioning officials to deem the county a “Second Amendment sanctuary” by limiting the enforcement of state and federal laws concerning gun regulation.
The popularity of “2A sanctuaries” has spiked nationwide over the last few months, with over 300 counties and cities declared safe havens from gun restrictions. In February, Murray County Sole Commissioner Greg Holden declared Murray a sanctuary, and nearby Dade County officials are looking into the process. In January, hundreds of North Georgia residents attended a rally in Floyd County to advocate for its government to sign on.
“Gun sanctuaries” are modeled after “sanctuary cities” that resist or ignore federal immigration policies. According to the National League of Cities, cities are allowed to establish priorities of enforcement by choosing to act only on specific state or federal laws or to not fund their enforcement.
Blankenship is the administrator of a 2A Sanctuary Group in Catoosa County, and in late January, he created a change.org petition that had over 500 resident signatures as of Feb. 11.