Suit Seeks To Prevent Further Searches of Missouri Church [Corrected]

In Independence, Missouri yesterday, the New Covenant Faith Center, along with its pastor, his wife and the church secretary filed suit to prevent the Jackson County Sheriff's Office from conducting further searches of the church or having contacts with its members. The Kansas City Star reports that in a series of searches last week, authorities took $130,000, computers and files containing personal information about church members. The church cannot meet its payroll or operate as a result of the seizures. The lawsuit, which alleges that church members' free exercise rights have been infringed, also seeks damages and return of the property that was taken. The church's pastor, Lloyd D. Sartain, was detained twice but no charges have been filed. The search warrant has been sealed and no one will comment on the charges that led to the searches. According to the Kansas City Pitch last week, authorities also found four guns during the searches. The church's attorney (who regained his law license in 2006 after serving federal prison time for bribery and bank fraud) criticized Sheriff Mike Sharp's performance. The attorney says a power struggle within the church led to the investigation, and rumors it operates as a cult are inaccurate. [Note: An earlier version of this posting incorrectly identified the location of Independence as Kansas instead of Missouri.]