Wednesday, October 18, 2017

Church Feeding Homeless Denied Preliminary Injunction Because No Harm Imminent

In Compassion Church, Inc. v. City of Davenport, Iowa, (SD IA, Oct. 16, 2017), an Iowa federal district court refused to issue a preliminary injunction to prevent interference with a church serving breakfast to the homeless each day.  While in April zoning officials had issued a cease-and-desist order requiring the church to stop serving meals until it obtained rezoning, in May the city informed the church that it would not enforce the cease-and-desist order.  It also told the church that serving breakfast to the homeless was consistent with its current zoning classification.  The court concluded that plaintiffs had not shown the threat of irreparable harm since enforcement against it was unlikely.  Quad-City Times reports on the decision.