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A Council committee is considering adding houses of worship to the list of places where the concealed carry of handguns will be prohibited.
Under emergency legislation passed in September, people with a concealed carry permit will not be able to bring handguns into schools, government buildings and places where alcohol is served, and on public transportation. Not included are houses of worship, which, like private businesses, may still prohibit the concealed carry of handguns by posting signage.
The National Cathedral, an Episcopal church that doubles as a tourist attraction, supports exempting houses of worship from concealed carry.
“Our churches, synagogues, mosques, and other houses of worship must be a safe place for prayer and reflection, not for guns and violence,” Patricia Johnson, representing Cathedral Dean Gary Hall and Bishop Mariann Budde of the Episcopal Diocese of Washington, told the Council. “Reducing gun violence and taking the necessary political steps to do so are, at their root, profoundly spiritual concerns. Allowing guns in our churches, synagogues, and mosques is to deny the responsibility of God’s call to us.”
The Downtown Cluster of Congregations, a coalition of dozens of churches, also supports the exemption. “It is popularly understood houses of worship serve as sanctuaries — places where there should be freedom from threats, violence and danger,” Executive Director Terrance Lynch said in a letter to the Council. “Persons should be able to attend worship services of their choice secure in the knowledge that they are indeed sanctuaries.”
Councilmember Tommy Wells, who chairs the Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety, seemed supportive of exempting houses of worship. “The presumption should be that guns are not allowed in churches,” he said.
A spokesperson for the Ward 6 Councilmember said the committee “is considering how to proceed with houses of worship.”
One option, she said, “is to mirror the presumption that exists for residential property owners.” As written, guns are prohibited in private homes unless the concealed carrier has been told otherwise.
Legislation allowing the concealed carry of handguns was drafted in response to a court ruling that found D.C.’s complete ban on public carry to be unconstitutional. Metropolitan Police Department Chief Cathy Lanier will release regulations by the end of the business day Thursday, as a stay on the handgun ruling expires. Gun owners will be able to apply for a concealed carry permit after that.
