Pending Lawsuit Challenges Favoritism To Catholic School In Use of City Athletic Fields

AP yesterday reported on a lawsuit filed in October in federal district court in Rhode Island claiming that the Pawtucket Office of Parks and Recreation is showing favoritism toward religious schools. The complaint (full text) in Rogers v. Mulholland, (D RI, filed 10/14/2009), alleges that giving exclusive after-school use of two particular public athletic fields for practice by Catholic Saint Raphael's Academy, instead of allowing public schools to also use them, violates the Establishment Clause as well as the due process and equal protection clauses of both the U.S. and Rhode Island constitutions. St. Raphael's Academy is the alma mater of a number of influential city and state officials. An ACLU news release issued when the suit was filed indicates that the city has no written policies on issuing permits to use city athletic fields, leaving the decision in the total discretion of the city's superintendent of parks. [Thanks to Scott Mange for the lead.]