SALT LAKE CITY — A deadly shooting at a memorial gathering at a church meetinghouse in Salt Lake City on Wednesday night has renewed concerns about security in houses of worship.
Police say two people were killed and six others were injured.
According to Boston University professor Melvin Delgado, gun violence incidents at places of worship are distinctly disturbing.
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“A major sanctuary is lost,” said Dr. Delgado. “These places tend to be more sacred. And when gun violence enters these sacred places, it basically says anything can happen at any time. So there’s no real place in the community where people can feel safe.”
Rabbi Benny Zippel, executive director of Chabad Lubavitch of Utah, said members of his congregation reached out to him in fear after hearing about the shooting.
“Whenever something happens, like the shooting at the LDS ward last night, people get frightened,” said Zippel.
Zippel, who has led his congregation for more than 20 years, said security measures at his synagogue have been in place for years — and continue to be upgraded.
“We have an entry point camera which records every single person that walks in and out of the building. The glass on the perimeter of the building has been upgraded to bulletproof glass,” said Zippel.
He explained that they do everything they can to ensure their visitors and members alike feel safe and secure.
“The idea we have to constantly increase our security measures is an awakening to me about how much harder we have to work in making people aware of their Godly pursuits versus Godless,” said Zippel.
Private security services are also seeing a demand from faith communities.
“Two months ago, we had a person hire us to go with them to a funeral that they thought maybe there was going to be some violence at,” said Chad Soffe, with Panther Security and Investigations. “Two private investigators sat on each side who were armed.”
Delgado, who has studied urban shootings for years, said tragedies like this ripple far beyond the immediate victims.
“To go to a church service to grieve and then you, in turn, have more pain and suffering inflicted on attendees — it’s a powerful event that has more than one victim beyond the person who was shot and killed,” said Delgado.
He urged faith groups and community organizations to join forces to help restore a sense of safety.
“Houses of worship — whether it’s outside or inside — the dynamics of bringing people together, providing safety and comfort, are lost. There has to be special outreach efforts to bring people back in,” said Delgado.
