As incidents of domestic terrorism have risen in recent years, at least three states in the US have taken steps to strengthen their laws aga...
As incidents of domestic terrorism have risen in recent years, at least three states in the US have taken steps to strengthen their laws against paramilitary activity. Vermont, for example, has banned paramilitary training camps and included a provision for civil enforcement to allow local prosecutors to seek a court injunction to stop the activity while investigations or charges are pending. This law could provide a template for other states to follow. However, Idaho is taking a different approach, as the state Senate has passed a bill to repeal its existing law banning private militias, which is currently unenforced.
This could send a message that participation in a private militia is legal and protected. Incidents of domestic terrorism, which includes violent militia activity, increased 357% from 2013 to 2021, according to a February report from the Government Accountability Office. As a result, the new laws could shape where militias operate and what they feel emboldened to do in the future.
5 Reasons Why Militias Exists In America
- Historical roots: Militias have a long history in the United States, dating back to the colonial period when militias were formed to protect against external threats and to maintain internal security.
- Second Amendment: The Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution guarantees the right of citizens to bear arms, and many militias argue that they are exercising this right in order to protect their communities and their country.
- Anti-government sentiment: Some militias have formed in response to a perceived threat from the government, which they see as overstepping its bounds and infringing on their rights.
- Fear of foreign invasion: Some militias believe that the United States is at risk of invasion by foreign powers, and see themselves as a line of defense against such a threat.
- Patriotism: Many militia members consider themselves to be patriots, and see their role as defending the country against internal and external threats.
The situation in Vermont has been ongoing for years, as locals have complained about a neighbor’s paramilitary training camp in the woods near West Pawlet. The facility’s activities include gun fights, explosions, and allegations of participants harassing locals. Despite multiple complaints to Vermont State Police, none of the activities rose to the level of a criminal charge. Though the Vermont Constitution forbids private military units, the language is old and broad, making it difficult to act.
Vermont’s bill has already passed the state Senate and is specifically aimed at paramilitary training camps like the one in West Pawlet. It includes a provision for civil enforcement, which means a local prosecutor would be able to seek a court injunction to order a group to stop this activity while investigations or charges are pending. Mary McCord, the executive director of Georgetown University Law Center’s Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection (ICAP), believes that the provision for civil enforcement is an essential component of the bill, as it provides additional avenues for enforcement. She explains that while all 50 states have some form of law prohibiting private militias, they are not always enforced or clearly written. The new law in Vermont aims to address these shortcomings, providing clearer guidelines and more tools for law enforcement to respond proactively to the threat of domestic terrorism.
Two other states, Oregon and New Mexico, are considering anti-paramilitary bills based on draft legislation written by McCord and her colleague at ICAP. The proposed legislation would prohibit paramilitary groups from training or from patrolling in public, effectively banning militias from showing up at protests or other public gatherings to “protect” property or statues, a trend that has become more common in recent years. Each of these states has faced unique challenges with militias. Vermont has its militia training center, as well as organized militia operating in the state. New Mexico has seen militias acting as self-appointed border patrols, while Oregon has long been a favored locale for anti-government militias and has even seen in-fighting between these groups.
Militias Exists in America Because
- Disaster response: Some militias see themselves as first responders in the event of a disaster or emergency, and believe that they are better equipped to handle such situations than government agencies.
- Community building: Some militias exist as a means of building community and fostering social connections among like-minded individuals.
- Survivalism: Some militias see themselves as preparing for a collapse of society or other catastrophic events, and believe that they must be armed and organized in order to survive.
- Political activism: Some militias are involved in political activism, and seek to influence policy at the local, state, and national levels.
- Conspiracy theories: Some militias are driven by conspiracy theories, and see themselves as protecting against imagined threats such as a "new world order" or a "globalist" agenda.
McCord believes that the increased appetite to crack down on militias is partly because these groups are interacting more with regular people. In the 1990s and even in the 2010s, militias stood up against the federal government in events such as the Ruby Ridge, Waco, the Malheur Wildlife Refuge, and Bunkerville, Nevada incidents. Since then, militias have been more engaged with the public, with examples such as the Unite the Right rally, takeovers of and intrusions into statehouses, and the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol. As a result, McCord believes that federal legislation should provide additional routes for law enforcement and the public to push back against these groups.
However, the situation in Idaho is quite different. The state Senate has passed a bill that would repeal the state’s existing law that bans private militias
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