Persecuted Missionary Jesse Boyd along with his family and missionary partners was falsely accused in Madison County on November 12, 2022. Boyd doesn’t take these accusations concerning himself and his family and comrades lightly. The following comparative analysis is a fascinating literary account of how vastly different two counties reacted to the missionaries in their area. Below is Boyd’s account.

“Do you remember Charles Dickens’ “Tale of Two Cities”? Outside the Bible, the opening lines are probably some of the best opening lines of all time.

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us …”

I want to briefly share a tale of TWO STATES.

Both are stand-your-ground states where a man can use deadly force to defend himself or others from a threat of serious bodily harm. Both are constitutional carry states where a citizen can carry a concealed weapon for protection and self-defense WITHOUT a permit. One is an old state, admitted to the Union way back in 1792 and the first carved from the “Great Western Wilderness.” The other is much younger, becoming a state in 1889 and also carved from the “Great Western Wilderness” almost 100 years later. I’m speaking of KENTUCKY and MONTANA.

Within this tale of two states with very similar self-defense and gun laws, however, is really a TALE OF TWO COUNTIES, one called LEE and the other called MADISON.

And both tales involve a Sheriff’s Deputy.

It begins on November 3, 2021, along a rural Kentucky Hwy 399 in Lee County. It is somewhat cold and about 2:00 pm. Deputy Kenneth with the Lee County Sheriff’s Department is out on patrol and observes some folks walking with a cross and an upside-down American flag. Just down the road, he notices a vehicle parked on the shoulder. Deputy Kenneth pulls over to inquire and discovers that a team of Christians is walking across America with a support vehicle. Curious, Deputy Kenneth asks Jesse Boyd if the walkers are armed. He explains that there is a lot of drug activity in rural Eastern Kentucky and encourages whoever is walking with the cross or the flag to carry a firearm for personal protection. He gladly receives a Gospel tract from Mr. Boyd as the two talks briefly about the sad spiritual state of the nation. As Deputy Kenneth prepares to drive off, he asserts: “Carry that firearm, and please don’t be afraid to draw it or use it in the face of a threat to your safety. That is your right, and that right is protected here in Kentucky.

“May God bless your journey.” THE END.

Our second tale begins on November 12, 2022, along a rural US Hwy 287 in Madison County, Montana. It is very cold and about 2:40 pm. This same team of walkers is confronted at their support vehicle by an angry stranger who threatens their lives, reaches for something in his front seat, gets out of his vehicle, and then charges Jesse Boyd while he standing at the support vehicle beside his 12-year-old son. Mr. Boyd remembers Deputy Kenneth’s advice from Lee County, Kentucky, and recalls that Montana is also a stand-your-ground and constitutional carry state. He draws his firearm to neutralize the threat. The stranger stops dead in his tracks, and a father isn’t clotheslined over his vehicle’s rear gearbox and knocked out cold on the side of the highway, thereby leaving his son and daughter exposed to danger.

Moments later, when the attacker seems to calm down, Mr. Boyd puts the firearm out of reach, and because he loves Jesus, he attempts in good faith to reason with his attacker. The vile attacker gets bold again when the firearm is put away and physically assaults Mr. Boyd, punching him, tackling him to the ground, and effectively burying him in the snow. Jesse’s teenage daughter and two missionary partners respond to help extricate him from underneath a raging maniac who is pummeling him with his fists. The attacker escapes with a bloody nose, and the missionaries escape serious injury.

Later, Madison County Sheriff’s DEPUTY DAN WYATT responds to the scene. He LIES when he tells Mr. Boyd that a man can’t pull a gun on someone in Montana or any other state.

He LAUGHS when he tells the missionaries that since they like to walk across America together, they can all go to jail together. All four missionaries are thrown in jail and charged with felonies by Deputy Dan Wyatt of Madison County, Montana for simply heeding the advice of Deputy Kenneth of Lee County, Kentucky in the face of a threat. THE END.

Truly, it is the best of times, and it is the worst of times.

Two states have virtually the same self-defense and gun laws, and two counties in those states have sheriffs deputies entrusted to serve and protect such laws. One is a HERO who AFFIRMS the self-defense and gun laws of his state and wishes a team of Christians well. The other is a VILLAIN who RAPES the self-defense and gun laws of his state and throws a team of Christians in jail. Truly, it is an age of wisdom and an age of foolishness.

What is the moral of this story, this tale of two states and two counties?

Simple, laws on the books protect a law-abiding citizen insofar as those entrusted with their enforcement know them, abide by them, and are men of integrity. Some entrusted to enforce good laws are HEROES. Some entrusted to enforce good laws are VILLAINS.

There’s also a secondary moral.

A vile criminal in Madison County who walks free today ought to be praising and thanking Almighty God every morning he wakes, for had a walking preacher followed a Kentucky sheriff’s deputy’s advice TO THE LETTER, this criminal wouldn’t have escaped whining about a bloody nose. He would have been left lying in the snow with two big holes in his chest, never to wake again. Far away, a walking preacher who loves Jesus and who would rather err on the side of restraint and mercy sleeps quite peacefully amidst this season of darkness that is also a season of light.

Maybe the Montana State Attorney General’s Office and the Governor’s Office would like to hear this TALE OF TWO STATES.

Feel free to call and share it with them. You can reach Governor Greg Gianforte by calling this number (444-3111) and you can reach Attorney General Austin Knudsen’s by calling (406-444-2026).