Lyon County a Second Amendment sanctuary?

Whether or not Lyon County would consider becoming a Second Amendment sanctuary was discussed during the board’s meeting Tuesday morning.

Second Amendment sanctuary refers to an entity that have adopted laws or resolutions that prohibit or impede the enforcement of certain gun control measures perceived as violative of the Second Amendment. Commissioner Steve Ritter said he presented the hot button topic after researching what other local governments had approved across the country.

“It’s my duty to bring this forward if I feel it’s something that could have an effect on our people in this county that I represent,” he said.

“The state could force us to use local taxpayer dollars to defend a position that we’re not in favor of in this county. There could be these ‘red flag’ backgrounds. They could force us to use some taxpayers’ money — that I represent part of it — for the gain of the anti-gun people in this state.”

Ritter first asked for advice about passing such a resolution from Lyon County Attorney Rick Maes, who said that it was important to look at the bigger picture. “There are backgrounds being conducted now, and there have been for years,” Maes said.

“I think the conversation is good, but I don’t see this taking place.” One example the resolution cited in the dialogue included a section in which a county government would encourage state legislators not to bring forward laws that are unconstitutional.  “Well, for me, that’s, ‘No kidding. That’s the way it works,’” Maes said. “We took an oath when we were elected to uphold the Constitution. … From a board perspective, you are given responsibilities by statute as far as what you address. I don’t know why really — this is more a personal standpoint — you would want to enter into a resolution when you’ve already sworn that you’re going to uphold what you’re talking about.”

The idea of local governments passing sanctuary resolutions is a nationwide trend, but they are not enforceable and would have no legal effect, Maes said. The overall goal is to embolden citizens to show support for the Second Amendment, which is already protected by the Constitution and so is not enforceable by law.

“That piece right there grabs people’s attention and they jump on this movement. If anything, it’s a symbolic gesture of support and that’s really all the resolution would be,” Maes said. “Any resolution that is inconsistent with the Constitution, with any other laws, in and of itself is unconstitutional and has absolutely zero legal effect. I, specifically, question why counties even entertain entering into a resolution such as this.” Lyon County Sheriff Eric Wallen said he would agree with most of Maes’ statements. Ritter said his goal was always to represent the interests of his constituents.

“I understand that. But I can just see more and more could happen, and it might not happen,” he said to Maes. “I appreciate your input because I’m not an attorney. And I can see what you’re saying makes sense.”

Commissioner Rick Anderson had some other ideas about addressing the issue. “If we’re going to do this right, I think we need to do what the state of Virginia did. They had 50,000 people show up with their guns on the state lawns there and never said, ‘Boo.’ And they defeated everyone who was Democratic. Congress overrode those (laws),” he said. “And that’s where we have to work at it, but we have to get the people to be involved in protecting themselves.”

In other action Tuesday morning, the board: 

• Heard a short update on local measures to control a potential COVID-19, or coronavirus, outbreak. DeSmet said the emergency management department was continuing to monitor the virus, though there were no reported cases in Minnesota as of Tuesday morning. He met with the public health department on Monday to go over precautions and to ensure there were enough medical supplies, such as masks and gowns, should the virus become an issue locally.

• Heard an update on the activities of the Lyon County Historical Society and events planned to celebrate the county’s 150th birthday in August. In the discussion, Jennifer Andries, executive director of the society, mentioned a time capsule that might be inside of a pillar in the Kiel & Morgan Hotel in Lynd, part of the original Marshall courthouse building that was built in 1892. Andries said the society was interested in scoping out the hotel, currently undergoing renovations, to see if the time capsule is there and can be presented during this summer’s celebrations. The board approved the exploration of retrieving the capsule this spring, including looking into whether the highway department’s resources could be used to lift the 8-ton pillar. 

• Permitted firearm hunting of wild turkey at Garvin Park during the Department of Natural Resources Season A (April 15-21) and Season B (April 22-28). During that time, the park will be closed 30 minutes before sunrise until noon each day. The board also approved archery hunting of wild turkey there for the remainder of the season, which ends May 31.

• Approved a one-time cost-share assistance program up to $30,000 to help bring landowners in compliance with the buffer law, at a rate of $300 per acre.