County Backs Off Controversial Zoning Citation Against Bible-Study Group Meetings

A land use citation issued by the San Diego County Department of Planning and Land Use has generated a swirl of protest. As reported last week by the Christian Examiner and the San Diego Union-Tribune, Pastor David Jones and his wife hold weekly Bible study sessions at their home. Around 20 people attend. After complaints about parking congestion, the county told the Jones' that regulations required a permit to use premises for "religious assemblies." An international furor was generated when a report disseminated widely online said that when a county code enforcement officer visited the home on Good Friday, he asked-- apparently to determine if it was a "religious assembly"-- questions about whether the group prays or uses the words "amen" and "praise the Lord." The Western Center for Law & Policy sent a letter (full text) to the county arguing that the Bible study is not a "religious assembly" within the meaning of the zoning regulations, and that the administrative citation violates RLUIPA, the free exercise clause and the Jones' right to peaceably assemble. The county has now backed off, deciding that the meetings are not religious assemblies, which are defined in county regulations as: "religious services involving public assembly such as customarily occurs in synagogues, temples, and churches." It continues to investigate whether the questions asked by the investigating officer were proper.