A Maryland State Police employee told me that the highest concentration of legal handgun ownership in Baltimore City is centered in the Jewish community. Yet even though you have never heard of a negligent discharge (inadvertent or accidental discharge of a firearm) nor of a child finding and handling a firearm nor of an illegal use of a legal firearm in our community – there is a great deal of fear and loathing when it comes to firearms and firearm ownership. On the other hand, the current rise in both crime and antisemitism creates an impetus to be licensed to own and carry a firearm – and to do it as soon as possible.
Please
note: This article is not
comprehensive. In the State of Maryland, handgun ownership requires a four-hour
course, and a carry permit requires a 16-hour course that includes all the
legal and practical aspects of owning a firearm as well as a shooting
qualification that shows a certain basic level of proficiency in the use of a
firearm. We are lucky to have a number of fantastic, qualified, experienced
instructors in our community, and I encourage anyone who is considering firearm
ownership to seek out one of these instructors. Additionally, I will only
address handgun issues. Long guns, such as shotguns and AR-15s (AR does not
stand for assault rifle; it stands for Armalite Rifle, the original
manufacturer) are beyond the scope of this article.
* * *
For
the sake of having some sort of limit, I’ve picked 13 common questions to
address.
1) Why would I want a firearm in my home?
There is
an adage that goes, “When seconds count, the police are only minutes away.” In
Baltimore in particular, the police are probably more than minutes away.
Furthermore, the Supreme Court decided that the police do not have an
obligation to protect you (despite painting “Serve and Protect” on their
vehicles). Often, the only protector for you and your family is you.
2) Is it difficult to obtain a legal firearm?
“Difficult”
is relative. Those who have successfully passed the course of study prescribed
by the Maryland State Police and all background checks and have obtained a
permit to purchase a firearm can do so easily. Even so, there is a seven-day
waiting period between the purchase decision and the ability to take home a
regulated handgun in Maryland.
3) How do I keep children safe around firearms?
Maryland
law says that you may not leave a firearm where a person under the age of 18
could access it. Safe gun storage is a must, and there are a number of ways
that guns can be stored safely. Most often, this involves the use of a safe
specifically designed for guns and valuable storage. As long as your gun is
either on your person or in its safe, children should not have access to it.
Whether or not your children know that there is a gun in your home is up to
you, and there are programs that help teach children: “Stop! Don’ t Touch! Run
Away! Tell a Grown Up!” Even if you do not have a firearm in your home, you
generally do not know what happens when your child visits another home.
Teaching your children safety in the presence of a gun is never a bad idea.
4) If my firearm is locked in a safe, how could I access it quickly in
case of an emergency?
Staging (deciding
where to place) firearms and practicing accessing firearms are important factors
in protecting yourself and your family. An appropriate safe for your home
defense firearm is not tucked away in your basement. There are great safes that
will hold a single firearm, which can be staged in your home so that you would
have access to it in case of emergency. This is part of your emergency plan: Pick
a “safe room” that your family knows about. Make sure that room contains a
charged cell phone, your home defense firearm, a lockable door, and possibly a
heavy piece of furniture to use as a barricade.
5) Do I keep my firearm loaded?
Any
firearm that you will be using for self-defense should be loaded. The amount of
time you spend loading a firearm could be too long to protect your life. Any
firearms that you do not use for immediate defense could be stored unloaded.
6) Who should not own a firearm? Who cannot own a firearm?
If you
believe that there is no way that you would use a firearm, even to protect your
life or the life of your family, including your children, then perhaps you
should not own a firearm. In addition, the law prohibits certain people from
owning and/or carrying a firearm. Always make sure to answer any questions in
the permit and firearm purchase application 100% honestly. Certain mental
health issues, such as suicidal ideation, make gun ownership dangerous. Such
individuals who own firearms have the ability to temporarily give up their guns
until it is safe for them to have them again.
U.S.
citizens and green card holders can apply for firearms licenses. Other visa
holders cannot own firearms in Maryland.
7) How do I legally acquire a gun?
Find a
good instructor. Go to the range. Try it out. Take a class. Take another class.
Apply for a permit to purchase a regulated handgun in Maryland (this permit is
called an HQL).
8) Where can I carry a firearm, and where is it prohibited? Can I carry
in shul?
The
Maryland State Legislature passed, and Governor Moore signed into law, SB1, a
law that would severely restrict where legal, safe gun owners can carry their
firearms. Despite the unconstitutionality of this law, anything signed into law
becomes law until it is ruled unconstitutional. As soon as the law was signed,
lawsuits challenging its provisions were filed. (Full disclosure, I am one of
the individual plaintiffs in the lawsuit against SB1.)
SB1, as
written, prohibited carrying a firearm on any private property (this includes
businesses) without express permission of the property owner as of October 1,
2023. That restriction alone makes it difficult for legal gun owners to take
their guns from their homes. On September 29, however, a judge issued a
preliminary injunction that makes some (not all) of the aspects of the law
unenforceable, including the private property aspect. So, it is legal to move
about while legally carrying a firearm.
However,
there is a provision prohibiting carry in a “location for children,” which is
currently in effect. This would include any school as well as any shul that is
in a building that houses a school, even if school is not in session when the
shul is in use. The best thing to do is to ask your rabbi and/or the shul board
for express permission to carry in shul. As far as halacha goes, this is
between you and your rabbi. (You may find that he is carrying, too!) As far as
Maryland law goes, this is a permission issue.
9) What if I don’t want to own a gun? What if I’m afraid?
You don’t
have to own a gun if you don’t want to. If you are afraid of firearms because
you have never fired one, then perhaps you could take a trip to the range, or
contact a firearms instructor, for a gentle introduction to shooting. There are
alternatives to firearm ownership, including Tasers (legal in Baltimore), stun
guns (not legal in the city), pepper spray, knives (but learn how to use one in
self-defense), and, of course, fists.
10) What if my husband/wife owns a gun?
The only
legal owner of a firearm is the person who purchased it. That person can give
you permission to use it in your home in case of emergency, but only if you are
a person who could legally own a
firearm if you applied for one. If you own many firearms, you should consider
speaking to an attorney who is familiar with gun trusts, as firearms are in a
special category when it comes to estate planning. I always recommend that if
one spouse owns a firearm, the other spouse should at the very least get a permit
to purchase/own (an HQL), even if they never plan to purchase a firearm.
11) What are the legal implications if I use my gun to defend my life/my
family’s lives/someone else’s life?
Using a
firearm to defend your life is a serious decision. There are rules for the
legal use of force that are taught in firearms classes, and all the conditions
for the legal use of force must be in place for lethal force to be used. That
said, once you save your life (or the life of someone else), you should be
prepared for legal implications, including arrest and prosecution. Legal
representation is expensive, and few attorneys are familiar with the laws
involved with the use of a firearm. “Carry insurance,” which, depending on the
carrier you choose, provides attorneys and covers legal fees is a must for
anyone who might use a firearm in their own defense. While it is called carry
insurance, I recommend it to anyone who might use a firearm, even for self-defense,
in their own home.
12) Why do I see so many statistics about the dangers of firearm
ownership?
There are
many organizations that are very vocally against firearm ownership by
individuals. The Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, Moms Demand
Action, Everytown for Gun Safety, and others publish statistics that they hope
will convince lawmakers to restrict legal gun ownership. You will see them
every time a shooting occurs, and they refuse to discuss the legal use of
firearms for self-defense. I have attempted to have serious and calm
conversations with individuals from these organizations when I testified in
Annapolis, but they were not interested in dialogue. I understand where they
are coming from (mass shootings by individuals with serious mental health
issues who had access to guns), but my perspective is generally in the area of
identifying mental health issues rather than taking firearms away from law-abiding
citizens who want to protect themselves.
13) Is now the time to consider owning a firearm?
In 1933,
the Jews of Breslau had to surrender their firearms. The New York Times (April 23, 1933), under the headline “Permission to
Possess Arms Withdrawn From Breslau Jews,” wrote, “The Police President of this
city has decreed that ‘all persons now or formerly of the Jewish faith who hold
permits to carry arms or shooting licenses must surrender them forthwith to the
police authorities.’ The order is justified officially on the ground that
Jewish citizens have allegedly used their weapons for unlawful attacks on
members of the Nazi organization and the police.”
This is
more than just defending yourself against a carjacker who puts a gun to your
face – though local crime is enough reason to own a firearm. But just imagine
if every Jew in Israel on October 7 had had a loaded firearm on their person.
Esti
Rossberg is a mom of five and a firearms instructor with a passion for teaching
Jewish women how to defend themselves and their families. She can be reached at
womenoffire18@gmail.com or https://www.womenoffire.net
