J.D. Tuccille: After the Belleville attack, Jews face tough decisions about security

Bullet holes are seen in a stained glass window at the Sons of Jacob Synagogue in Belleville, Ont., after a shooting that left a police officer seriously injured and the suspect dead on Sept. 20, on the eve of Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish calendar. Photo by Courtesy of Doug LobelArticle contentCOTTONWOOD, Ariz. — The evening that a murderous antisemite opened fire outside a Yom Kippur service at the Sons of Jacob Synagogue in Belleville, Ont., I guarded a synagogue in Sedona, Ariz., hoping to prevent exactly that sort of incident. Fortunately, my time was less eventful than that of Const. Jeff Smith, who was badly wounded while fighting the attacker. But I spent the evening with a pistol and pepper spray on my hip and an AR-15 in reach while sweating under body armour because attacks like the one in Belleville have become all too common around the world. And while those gathered at Sons of Jacob were lucky to have Smith in place to defend them, most institutions need to look to their own safety.

Inside the Sedona synagogue, my wife and several other members of the congregation carried concealed firearms of their own in case my efforts proved inadequate. Like me, most of them are graduates of a well-regarded private Arizona school that offers firearms training to civilians, police officers and members of the military. Several of us have received additional training and we all practice our skills.

Columnist Jesse Kline keeps you up to date with what’s happening in Israel and the effects of antisemitism on life here in Canada. Friday mornings.

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That’s not uncommon in the U.S. When Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Mich., was attacked in March by a Hezbollah-linked terrorist, he was stopped by the synagogue’s armed security detail. They pinned the attacker in place in his incendiary-filled vehicle, leaving him as the only fatality.

“As you have no doubt heard, Temple Israel was the victim of a terrorist gunman who was confronted and neutralized by our security personnel who are truly heroes,” Temple Israel posted at the time. “Our teachers followed their training and kept the children safe and calm.”

Const. Smith’s presence at Sons of Jacob was fortuitous, but not the sort of protection on which most houses of worship can rely. When the synagogue I guard planned public Hanukkah celebrations, local police were very co-operative and assigned officers to provide protection in addition to our own efforts. But they were also clear that their small departments have limited manpower and that officers would be pulled away if they were needed to respond to accidents or crimes.

That’s when local authorities are supportive, which is not always the case. In Montgomery County, Md., officials twice tried to ban even defensive weapons at “sensitive public places,” including houses of worship, over the protests of many of the affected institutions. I asked the main sponsor of the legislation if she had given any thought to consulting with those affected to learn if they prefer to make their own rules regarding the carrying of firearms, but she ignored the question and insisted she was just restating earlier legislation that had been partly overruled by the courts.