Alabama now allows churches to form their own police forces

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

An Alabama megachurch will form its own police force after passage of controversial law

An Alabama megachurch plans to start its own police force thanks to a new law permitting the church to do just that.

The law, signed by Gov. Kay Ivey, authorizes Briarwood Presbyterian to "appoint and employ one or more suitable persons to act as police officers to protect the property of the school or academy."

A similar bill was proposed four years ago, but it was dropped by the Alabama legislature amid a public outcry over the Presbyterian Church in America's racist history, as well as criticism that the bill was unconstitutional and violated the Establishment Clause's separation of church and state. Briarwood Presbyterian is part of the PCA.

[Santander]

The police force is for the school that is owned by the church, not for the church itself.

[Person Man]

So when does Alabama legalize chop chop circle?

[dead0man]

I don't have a problem with this.  (assuming they'd let any other group do the same)

[I’m not Stu]

The thread title makes it sound like Alabama established a Christian mutaween.

[Frodo]

Oh, magnificent.  Before long, we are going to have our own version of the Faith Militant.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Oh, magnificent.  Before long, we are going to have our own version of the Faith Militant.

Not while Trump is President.  He doesn't even know the meaning of Shame. Shame. Shame.

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

The thread title makes it sound like Alabama established a Christian mutaween.

I deliberately didn't use "religious police" because I was trying to avoid that exact comparison. I do think this is a step in that direction, but it doesn't establish the sort of religious police Iran and Saudi Arabia have.  I'll try tweaking the title a bit.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Oh, magnificent.  Before long, we are going to have our own version of the Faith Militant.

Um, no?

Clickbait reporting on this aside, all it does is allow a church with a large campus and school establish a police force to provide security on its property and its property alone. It's not theocratic police, it's the equivalent of mall security.

If this is a problem than so is the campus security at every Christian university.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

I don't have a problem with this.  (assuming they'd let any other group do the same)

Alabama does allow private schools (including church-affiliated ones) to have police forces which are only allowed to carry non-lethal weapons. Rather than provide general guidelines for them, they require each school to be authorized specifically by the Legislature. The only novelty of this law is that this is the first time they've authorized them for K-12 institutions instead of colleges.

[Fuzzy Bear]

There's a difference between allowing a private university to have it's own police force and a religious denomination having their own police force.

This piece of legislation will be the back door by which Sharia Law enters America.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

I don't have a problem with this.  (assuming they'd let any other group do the same)

Alabama does allow private schools (including church-affiliated ones) to have police forces which are only allowed to carry non-lethal weapons. Rather than provide general guidelines for them, they require each school to be authorized specifically by the Legislature. The only novelty of this law is that this is the first time they've authorized them for K-12 institutions instead of colleges.

So this just shows the absurdity of the micromanaging in Alabama municipal governing.

Not surprising though, look up the Alabama constitution. It has amendments that apply only to a single county or city because amending the constitution is the only way for them to pass such legislation.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

There's a difference between allowing a private university to have it's own police force and a religious denomination having their own police force.

This piece of legislation will be the back door by which Sharia Law enters America.

You of all people saying this makes it feel like we entered bizarro world.

It's not a religious denomination having a police force, it's a single church with a large K-12 school attached having a police force to provide security for the school. So not fundamentally different from a university police force.

[ProudModerate2]

There's a difference between allowing a private university to have it's own police force and a religious denomination having their own police force.

This piece of legislation will be the back door by which Sharia Law enters America.

You of all people saying this makes it feel like we entered bizarro world.

It's not a religious denomination having a police force, it's a single church with a large K-12 school attached having a police force to provide security for the school. So not fundamentally different from a university police force.

Fuzzy knew that,
He just wanted to spew-off his hogwash "Sharia Law" doomsday scenario BS.

[Progressive Pessimist]

Alabama is really catching up to Florida with how bothered I am by it.

[Atlas Has Shrugged]

Isn’t this literally just private security?

[Grassroots]

Isn’t this literally just private security?

Yes.

[Fuzzy Bear]

Isn’t this literally just private security?

Yes.

Then it's not a police force.  It doesn't arrest people or enforce laws if that's the case.

[Person Man]

It seems silly that they would only have legalized private organizations to have their own security forces until now

[Badger]

There's a difference between allowing a private university to have it's own police force and a religious denomination having their own police force.

This piece of legislation will be the back door by which Sharia Law enters America.

You of all people saying this makes it feel like we entered bizarro world.

[Indy Texas]

2048:

The Alabama Civil War enters its ninth year.

The ruling government has retreated to the confines of the city of Montgomery, relying primarily on assistance from the Republican National Committee. It continues to assert itself as the legitimate government of the entire State of Alabama, despite having lost control of most of the state years ago.

In the northeast, Moore's Christian Soldiers, an army led by followers of the late judge, politician and religious prophet Roy Moore, have instituted a system rooted in Biblical law administered by a council of elders in each town.

In the Wiregrass Region, the Liberty Heritage Movement, a primarily Southern Baptist faction, maintains control.

The Black Belt has effectively become a state within a state, dubbed the Autonomous People's Federation of Central Alabama. Control of the area is contested by the Zion Missionary Baptist Resistance Front, led by a charismatic church pastor in Selma, and the New Afrikan People's Liberation Movement, a secular socialist militia supported by the DSA and many black activists.

Other areas are effectively lawless no man's land, with most people consigned to defend themselves from occasional raids by loosely affiliated New Confederate Army brigades, secular white nationalist militia groups that often raid houses and businesses in search of money and supplies. The NCA brigades enjoy support from the national Alt-Right movement, the Trumpist wing of the Republican Party, and some European far-right political parties. Drug smuggling and black market enterprises are their primary means of support.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Isn’t this literally just private security?

Yes.

Then it's not a police force.  It doesn't arrest people or enforce laws if that's the case.

It would do that. For example if anyone destroyed property on the school's premises then the could be arrested for vandalism. The same way you can be arrested by university police for destroying property on a university campus.

And that's basically all they'd be doing. Not enforcing some sort of theocratic code.

[Fuzzy Bear]

Isn’t this literally just private security?

Yes.

Then it's not a police force.  It doesn't arrest people or enforce laws if that's the case.

It would do that. For example if anyone destroyed property on the school's premises then the could be arrested for vandalism. The same way you can be arrested by university police for destroying property on a university campus.

And that's basically all they'd be doing. Not enforcing some sort of theocratic code.

A University Police Force does a bit more than what you're saying.  It would certainly have the authority to enforce all laws, and make all sorts of arrests.

For a school with students living on campus, that's fine.  I question whether or not a church with no residence on campus would need something like this.  Or any corporate entity, for that matter.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Isn’t this literally just private security?

Yes.

Then it's not a police force.  It doesn't arrest people or enforce laws if that's the case.

It would do that. For example if anyone destroyed property on the school's premises then the could be arrested for vandalism. The same way you can be arrested by university police for destroying property on a university campus.

And that's basically all they'd be doing. Not enforcing some sort of theocratic code.

Not even "Thou shalt not steal"? 

[Badger]

Isn’t this literally just private security?

Yes.

Then it's not a police force.  It doesn't arrest people or enforce laws if that's the case.

It would do that. For example if anyone destroyed property on the school's premises then the could be arrested for vandalism. The same way you can be arrested by university police for destroying property on a university campus.

And that's basically all they'd be doing. Not enforcing some sort of theocratic code.

A University Police Force does a bit more than what you're saying.  It would certainly have the authority to enforce all laws, and make all sorts of arrests.

For a school with students living on campus, that's fine.  I question whether or not a church with no residence on campus would need something like this.  Or any corporate entity, for that matter.

In central Ohio not only does Ohio State University have a bona fide police force with all the same arrest and enforcement Powers as a municipality, but so do some large hospitals. Again, these are not security agencies, but bona fide police agencies with full law enforcement powers the same as say Columbus Police or the state patrol.

Thus I am not sure allowing a private school to have police agency Authority to enforce the state and Municipal codes of Alabama are a bad thing in and of themselves. Obviously I have some concerns about how such agencies will enforce the law considering many Southern religious schools grew directly out of the segregation Academy movement post Brown V Board of Education, and carry that staying with them to this day. That said, it's Alabama and I'm not optimistic about many law enforcement agencies there anyway.

Again, it seems like Bizarro world that fuzzy and me are coming at somewhat different angles of acceptance.