A 17-year-old murder suspect from Montgomery was apprehended on Sunday at the Church of Highlands’ Pelham campus. The arrest came after he was discovered in possession of a gun, following the recent church shooting incident in Houston.
According to Jeffrey Rush, a local church’s safety and security director, it is crucial for congregations to have discussions about establishing safety and security teams in light of the incidents in Houston and within their own communities.
Rush emphasized the importance of not allowing incidents to dictate our actions.
Rush, a visiting assistant professor at the University of South Alabama, is actively involved in teaching criminal justice. In addition, he collaborates closely with various churches nationwide, providing training to their safety teams.
In his class, Rush emphasizes the importance of church safety and highlights that security measures in a church differ from those in other locations.
According to Rush, it is always preferable to de-escalate a situation through conversation rather than resorting to physical force or violence. He emphasized that in a church setting, their primary goal is to provide people with the support and guidance they need, and talking someone down from a potentially confrontational situation aligns with this objective. Rush believes that engaging in dialogue and understanding each other can lead to peaceful resolutions and better outcomes for all involved.
Shootings at churches, though relatively rare, have become more frequent in recent years, according to Rush. This can be attributed to churches being perceived as vulnerable targets and the growing presence of political affiliations within these religious spaces.
Rush acknowledged that a majority of the challenges faced by churches are likely to be medical in nature. He emphasized the importance of being prepared for such situations, noting that most churches are equipped to handle them. However, Rush also highlighted the need to be prepared for unforeseen events like the incident in Houston or potential incidents that could occur at the Church of the Highlands.
Many churches in the Birmingham area have safety teams and security measures in place. However, they keep these measures lowkey to avoid drawing attention to themselves as potential targets.
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