The Alabama Senate has voted to allow a church to form its own police force.

Lawmakers on Tuesday voted 24-4 to allow Briarwood Presbyterian Church in Birmingham to establish a law enforcement department.

The church says it needs its own police officers to keep its school as well as its more than 4,000 person congregation safe.

Critics of the bill argue that a police department that reports to church officials could be used to cover up crimes.

The state has given a few private universities the authority to have a police force, but never a church or non-school entity.

Police experts have said such a police department would be unprecedented in the U.S.

A similar bill is also scheduled to be debated in the House on Tuesday.

Source: Associated Press

The God Squad...repent or go to jail.. you friggin sinner... Lol

seems like it could get scary....

The entire concept is scary.. why stop there?, every church.. plus lets arm every school, every day care center, every Boy scout troop, every Little league coach,

Lets have 500 different type police departments

A recipe for disaster.

reminds me of that movie "Priest", where the world is control by religious fanatics...

And I have met a few JC fanatics along the way... not the type of people you want to have slinging a gun around with them in church.

I just don't believe that guns have any place in church or around church.. in any religion. JMO

It would be interesting to read what authority will be granted them, not all 'police' have the same duties or authorities.

A security force for that many people is not unreasonable,,depending upon the details of what their actual authority will be.

Only if they're allowed to operate anywhere other than church property.
Otherwise it's probably little different than "campus police" or "mall cop."


So...critics are wary of church police acting like every other police.
Where city/state cops try to cover up shootings and corruption, campus police covering up fraternity date rape statistics, mall cops covering up video cameras in the changing rooms.

Nope. I am Christian but thia ain't right. If they want security, they need to hire them. They aren't the law and don't need police. UTA (Arlington) has campus police here but they have to go by law and get police involved when needed. If a church needs that, they need to hire security (their own money).

I was wondering the same thing, but it is a school, so probably the same as campus police

second amendment is for everyone as written no one is forced to enroll
in their school or go to their church services

you could assign officers to thier facilities but then everyone would say
separation of church and state the govt shouldnt be paying for special
protection for a religious organization

so which way does it go

the church could pay for some off duty cops to be security, like other companies do, but they wouldn't have the control over them like they would have if they owned the force...

Give me 150 hail Marys or I'll spike your azz to the cross MOFO!

Give me $100 and I can do the same (not Canadian money)

I need backup... This one here^^^^ is out of line.... AGAIN!

Whatever

It could be worse. She could demand that Canada take back Justin Bieber.

You don't pay attention do ya?I HAVE said to take him back

They don't want him even though he is theirs

Why does everything "Canadian" revert back to Bieber?


He's yours now dammit!