On Tuesday, the U.S. Attorney General William Barr issued a statement (
full text) on
Religious Practice and Social Distancing. He said in part:
In exigent circumstances, when the community as a whole faces an impending harm of this magnitude, and where the measures are tailored to meeting the imminent danger, the constitution does allow some temporary restriction on our liberties that would not be tolerated in normal circumstances.
But even in times of emergency, when reasonable and temporary restrictions are placed on rights, the First Amendment and federal statutory law prohibit discrimination against religious institutions and religious believers. Thus, government may not impose special restrictions on religious activity that do not also apply to similar nonreligious activity. For example, if a government allows movie theaters, restaurants, concert halls, and other comparable places of assembly to remain open and unrestricted, it may not order houses of worship to close, limit their congregation size, or otherwise impede religious gatherings. Religious institutions must not be singled out for special burdens.
He also indicated that the Department of Justice had filed a Statement of Interest (
full text)
Temple Baptist Church v. City of Greenville, a Mississippi church's challenge to a ban on drive-in church services. (See
prior posting.) Subsequently Greenville's mayor indicated that the city would allow drive-in services as long as families stay in their cars with the widows rolled up. (
WREG News).
