National Rifle Association President Carolyn Meadows is paying local sheriff’s deputies to guard her home in east Cobb County, Georgia.
A report from WSB-TV said the NRA’s chief of security reached out to Cobb County Sheriff’s Office after the deadly mass shootings in El Paso, Texas, and Dayton, Ohio, over the weekend, which left at least 31 people dead. At least one deputy is stationed outside the home at any given time, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Glenn Daniel, a spokesman for the Cobb County Sheriff’s Office, confirmed that Meadows is paying the deputies to provide security for her home in Marietta, a city northwest of Atlanta.
“The deputies are working a part time detail on behalf of the home/property owner. The home/property owner is paying for the deputy’s services,” Daniel told the Washington Examiner in a statement.
A source told WSB-TV that it is unclear if Meadows is facing any credible threats or is just taking extra precautions after the recent mass shootings. Daniel did not comment when asked about it.
The NRA did not immediately return a request for comment.
WSB-TV reported that Cobb County Democratic Party Chairwoman Jacquelyn Bettadapur said someone stuffed anti-gun postcards into Meadows’ mailbox, but distanced her group from the stunt.
Meadows, an Republican active in Georgia politics, was elected president of the NRA in April after its previous leader, Oliver North, was pushed out amid controversy. Cobb County Republican Party Chairman Jason Shepherd said he left a voicemail for Meadows offering “support and assistance.”
Critics of the NRA, including 2020 Democrats, blamed the gun rights group and President Trump for the mass shootings last weekend and called for stricter gun laws. Hundreds of protesters gathered in front of the NRA headquarters in Fairfax, Virginia, on Monday to demand more restrictive gun laws and put pressure on Capitol Hill to take action.
Over the past couple of days, Trump has indicated support for more extensive background checks, saying Wednesday in Dayton that there is a “great appetite” for them. But this openness to a background check bill led to a warning from NRA chief executive Wayne LaPierre, who told the president his supporters would not approve such action, according to the Washington Post.
The NRA put out a statement Sunday expressing “deepest sympathies are with the families and victims of these tragedies, as well as the entire communities of El Paso and Dayton.”
The gun rights group also stressed that it remains committed to the “safe and lawful” use of firearms under the protection of the Second Amendment. “We will not participate in the politicizing of these tragedies but, as always, we will work in good faith to pursue real solutions that protect us all from people who commit these horrific acts,” the statement said.
