Dade County, Missouri passes resolution in support of Second Amendment

On March 15, 2021, the Dade County, Missouri Sheriff and Commissioners passed a resolution in support of the Second Amendment. If you know the vote count for this resolution, please let us know by emailing contact@sanctuarycounties.com.

Verification Citation/Source: Dade County, MO – County Commissioners, Sheriff
Resolution date passed: 15 Mar 2021
Vote Count: Unknown.

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RESOLUTION OF THE DADE COUNTY COMMISSION AND DADE COUNTY SHERIFF

WHEREAS, the Second Amendment to the Bill of Rights of the Constitution of the United States of America provides, “A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.”

WHEREAS, Article I, Section 23 of the Constitution of the State of Missouri provides, “That the right of every citizen to keep and bear arms, ammunition, and accessories typical to the normal function of such arms, in defense of his home, person, family and property, or when lawfully summoned in aid of the civil power, shall not be questioned. The rights guaranteed by this section shall be unalienable. Any restriction on these rights shall be subject to strict scrutiny and the state of Missouri shall be obligated to uphold these rights and shall under no circumstances decline to protect against their infringement. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent the general assembly from enacting general laws which limit the rights of convicted violent felons or those adjudicated by a court to be a danger to self or others as a result of a mental disorder or mental infirmity.”

WHEREAS, in District of Columbia v. Heller, the United States Supreme Court held that the Second Amendment conferred an individual right to keep and bear arms, and that the Second Amendment extends to all instruments that constitute bearable arms, even those that were not in existence at the time of the founding. Further, the right to keep arms constituted an individual right unconnected with militia service and to use those arms for traditionally lawful purposes, such a self-defense within the home.

WHEREAS, Section I of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States provides, in part “.No state..shall […] deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

WHEREAS, in McDonald v. City of Chicago, the United States Supreme Court held that the Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms is fully applicable to the States by virtue of the Fourteenth Amendment, and that the framers and ratifiers of the Fourteenth Amendment counted the right to keep and bear arms among those fundamental rights necessary to our system of ordered liberty.

WHEREAS, in Printz v. United States, the United States Supreme Court, relying on past precedent, recognized, “… Congress cannot compel the States to enact or enforce a federal regulatory program…. Congress cannot circumvent that prohibition by conscripting the State’s officers directly. The Federal Government may neither issue directives requiring the States to address particular problems, nor command the States’ officers, or those of their political subdivisions, to administer or enforce a federal regulatory program.”

WHEREAS, the Tenth Amendment provides, “The power not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

WHEREAS, the County Commission and Sheriff of Dade County desire to declare their support for these principals relating the Second Amendment of the Constitution of the United States in accordance with their oath of office.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNTY COMMISSION OF DADE COUNTY, MISSOURI, AND THE SHERIFF OF DADE COUNTY, MISSOURI, AS FOLLOWS:

1. Recitals. The County Commission and Sheriff incorporate the whereas clauses set forth in the recitals above as the findings of the County Commission and Sheriff, respectively.

2. The Dade County Commission and Dade County Sheriff promote responsible ownership, transfer, use, possession, and storage of firearms, firearms accessories and ammunition and condemns the use of arms in criminal or unlawful activities.

3. The Dade County Commission and Dade County Sheriff are firmly resolved to support and defend the Constitution of the United States and of the State of Missouri against every aggression, whether foreign or domestic, and is duty bound to oppose every violation of those principles that constitute the basis of the union of the states because only a faithful observance of those principles can secure the union’s existence and the public happiness. 

4. The following federal acts, laws, executive orders, administrative orders, court orders, rules and regulations shall be considered infringements on the people’s rights to keep and bear arms, as guaranteed by the Second Amendment of the Constitution of the United States and Article I, Section 23 of the Constitution of Missouri, including, but not limited to

a. Any tax, levy, fee, or stamp imposed on firearms, firearm accessories, or ammunition not common to all other goods and services and that might reasonably be expected to create a chilling effect on the ownership, transfer, use, and possession of said items by law abiding citizens;

b. Any registration or tracking of firearms, firearms accessories, or ammunition;

c. Any registration or tracking of owners of firearms, firearm accessories, or ammunition:

d. Any act forbidding or prohibiting the ownership, transfer, use, and possession of a firearm, firearm accessory, or ammunition by law abiding citizens; and 

e. Any act ordering the confiscation of firearms, firearm accessories, or ammunition from law abiding citizens.

(collectively “Acts”).

5. Dade County, the Dade County Commission, and the Dade County Sheriff, and its officials, agents, and employees shall not enforce or attempt to enforce any federal acts, laws, executive orders, administrative orders, court orders, rules, regulations, statutes, or ordinances that are described in paragraph 6, above, or use county funds or county assets in an effort to enforce or attempt to enforce said Acts. Dade County, the Dade County Commission, and the Dade County Sheriff, and its officials, agents, and employees will not knowingly deprive a citizen of the rights or privileges described in the Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States or Article I, Section 23 of the Constitution of the State of Missouri while acting under the color of any state or federal law.

6. This Resolution should not be interpreted or construed as affording protections to individuals who have been convicted of felony crimes or who are otherwise prohibited from the ownership, transfer, use, or possession of a firearm, firearm accessory, or ammunition pursuant to law, and is not intended to prohibit the investigation or prosecution of any crime for which the ownership, transfer, use or possession of a firearm, firearm accessory, or ammunition is an aggregating factor, enhancement, or violation relating to an otherwise independent crime.

7. Further, this Resolution shall not prohibit officials, agents, and employees of Dade County, the Dade County Commission, and the Dade County Sheriff from assisting and providing services relating to permitting, licensing, registering, or processing applications for concealed carry permits or other firearms, firearm accessories, or ammunition licenses, registrations or permits, or the use of county assets or county funds for said purposes.

8. Effective Date. This Resolution shall be effective as of the date set forth below.

RESOLVED AND ADOPTED this 15th day of March, 2021.

DADE COUNTY COMMISSION

Randy Daniel, Presiding Commissioner

Jake O’Connor, West District Commissioner

Brian White, East District Commissioner

DADE COUNTY SHERIFF

Max Huffman, Sheriff

ATTEST:

Melinda Wright, County Clerk

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