Collin County has joined a growing number of Texas cities taking a stand for the Second Amendment.
So far, at least 10 counties have declared themselves Second Amendment sanctuaries.
The trend came after the mass shooting in El Paso and comments by former presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke during a Democratic primary debate.
"Hell yes, we're going to take away your AR-15, we're not going to let them be used against fellow Americans anymore!" O'Rourke exclaimed.
Monday, Collin County passed a resolution that's "reaffirming our support for the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution."
It was introduced by Collin County Judge Chris Hill during Monday's commissioners meeting.
"I wanted to put together a resolution that says we will honor our oath of office. We will follow the laws and we will preserve, protect and defend the constitution of the laws," Hill said.
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Members of the public weighed in.
"People kill people, not guns," said Fairview City Councilman Roland Feldman.
"I have never felt more afraid for my brown boys than I do in this county," said a tearful opponent.
Since O'Rourke's response at the Democratic debate in September, Hill said more than 100 people came forward to request the county take a stand for the Second Amendment.
"That frustrates citizens in this community who are law abiding," Hill said.
Some criticized the timing -- three months after an Allen man carried out the El Paso mass shooting and the same day as an Allen teenager was laid to rest. Marquel Ellis Jr., 16, was shot and killed at a party on Nov. 16.
"I would love to see the county be just as interested in everyone's safety as they are to try to make a political statement," said one critic at Monday's meeting.
Supporters said with gun rights under fire, defending the Second Amendment is their first priority.
"In this day and age, when so many politicians are out here trying to shred the constitution and not stand by their oath, I applaud you," one supporter said.
The resolution passed unanimously.
The resolution reads as follows:
“A resolution of the Collin County Commissioners Court, reaffirming our support for the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution.
A resolution of the Collin County Commissioners Court, reaffirming our support for the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution.
WHEREAS, we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men and women are created equal, that they are endowed by the Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed;
and WHEREAS, for the benefit and protection of all people, these unalienable rights are enumerated and enshrined in the Constitution and laws of the United States and the State of Texas;
now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, we hereby reaffirm our sacred oath to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States and the State of Texas. So help us God.”
