CLAY COUNTY, Fla. – Clay County Commissioner Gavin Rollins said there’s a reason why he and other commissioners are voting to follow the path of four Florida counties that have declared themselves Second Amendment sanctuary counties.
“Why now? Well, you have presidential candidates like Beto O’Rourke saying that they were going to implement programs to come confiscate guns," Rollins said.
A Second Amendment sanctuary is used to describe a jurisdiction that passes a resolution declaring that if gun control laws are changed by another legislative body, they will not be enforced.
“It’s simply to say that we stand up for the Second Amendment, and second, we wouldn’t cooperate with federal gun confiscation programs,” Rollins said.
Prior to Friday morning, Florida had three sanctuary counties, which included Lake, Marion and Suwanee counties. That number jumped to four when Bradford County declared sanctuary status.
Opponents of the sanctuary status have argued that the resolution opposes emergency protection orders, enforcement of background checks and red flag laws that allow police and family members to petition a state court to have firearms temporarily removed from someone who might pose a danger.
Rollins said although the Clay County ordinance doesn’t specifically address red flag laws, he’s against red flag laws because he said they lack due process.
“I think you have to have due process where the person has a chance to explain, and it’s not just a judge taking someone’s rights away with any due process.”
Rollins said the Clay County ordinance does not address emergency protection orders. The main purpose is to address the possibility of the federal government confiscating guns that are owned by law abiding citizens.
News4Jax requested comment from the organization Moms Demand Action. The leader of the Jacksonville chapter said the organization was not currently commenting on the topic.