Objective coverage of church-state and religious liberty developments, with extensive links to primary sources.
Thursday, November 09, 2006
First Amendment Defense In Trespass Case Fails
In Commonwealth v. Cartwright, (MA Sup. Jud. Ct., Nov. 8, 2006), the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court yesterday rejected a First Amendment Free Exercise defense raised in a criminal trespassing case. Defendant, Pastor Scyrus Cartwright, formerly owned a building that he says he held "in trust for the use and benefit of the members of Lord and Christ Church, Inc." His wife received the property as part of a divorce settlement and she, in turn, conveyed it to Pastor Jewel Hardmon. The court upheld the jury's conclusion that Hardmon had legal control over the property.