Court Allows Most of Abused Plaintiff's Claims Against Diocese To Proceed

In Doe v. Norwich Roman Catholic Diocesan Corp., 2020 Conn. Super. LEXIS 616 (CT Super. Ct., May 26, 2020), a Connecticut trial court refused to dismiss many of the allegations in a lawsuit alleging that a Catholic diocese acted negligently and recklessly in a manner leading to sexual abuse of the plaintiff by two Catholic priests between 1978 and 1988. According to the court:

The challenged allegations include the plaintiff's claims alleging the defendants' failure to immediately remove Charles Many or J. Lawrence Ouimet from their assigned roles, provide training and/or educational programs as it pertains to proper conduct toward parishioners, promulgate policies and rules proscribing priests from taking children into private rooms when the defendants knew or should have known that priests in the defendant Diocese had sexually assaulted children under such circumstances, develop and implement a program or policy with regard to the issue of improper sexual conduct, and police the activities of the priests, particularly Charles Many and J. Lawrence Ouimet, upon the premises that the defendants owned and controlled. 

... [T]the majority of the plaintiff's challenged allegations involve a factual inquiry and do not require an interpretation or weighing of a religious belief, doctrine or practice that is undertaken for religious reasons.... These allegations concern child sex abuse by a Catholic priest, and whether the Diocesan Corporation knew or should have known of the same, about which there would be no need for the court to evaluate the proprieties of scripture or religious teachings.

The court did dismiss a portion of the allegations which involve religious decisions or religion-based obligations.

Police Had Cause To Search Residence of Catholic Religious Order Member

In State of Connecticut v. Sawyer, (CT Sup. Ct., March 19, 2020), the Connecticut Supreme Court held that the search warrant that led to the arrest of a member of a Catholic religious order for possessing child pornography was properly issued.  The court held that authorities had probable cause to search the residence of defendant, a member of The Brothers of Holy Cross, living with two other brothers in an apartment they rented from a West Haven Catholic church. Police acted on a report by one of defendant's roommates. AP reports on the decision.

Connecticut Rabbi Sentenced To 12 Years In Prison For Sex Abuse of High Schooler

According to the New Haven Independent, a Connecticut trial court judge yesterday sentenced Rabbi Daniel Greer, a once-prominent New Haven religious leader, to 12 years in prison, with 8 years after that on probation. He will also be required to register as a sex offender.  The 79-year old rabbi was convicted on four counts of risk of injury to a minor. The convictions grew out of a series of rapes of a male high school student from 2002 to 2005 while the student was enrolled at Rabbi Greer's New Haven yeshiva. Originally a jury found Greer guilty on four felony counts of child endangerment, but the judge reduced the charges to a lower felony class. Other sexual assault charges were dismissed on technical grounds.  In 2017, a civil jury awarded $21 million in damages against Greer and his yeshiva in a suit by the rape victim.  Little of that has been paid so far.

Parents Ask Court To Bar Publication of Data On Vaccination Rates In Individual Schools

Suit was filed last week in a Connecticut state trial court to prohibit the state Department of Public Health from continuing to post information on vaccination rates in individual schools. The complaint (full text) in Festa v. State of Connecticut Department of Public Health, (CT Super. Ct., filed 6/12/2019), says that publication of the information has led to "hateful and vitriolic statements regarding nonvaccinated students and parents" appearing on the Internet, creating mental and emotional distress to plaintiffs. Plaintiffs are parents of a student in a private school for children with autism and have claimed a religious exemption from vaccination.  Connecticut Mirror reports on the lawsuit.

Episcopal Parish's Suit Against Its Rector Is Dismissed

In Parish of St. Paul's Episcopal Church v. Kovoor, 2019 Conn. Super. LEXIS 714 (CT Super. Ct., April 10, 2019), a Connecticut state trial court dismissed a lawsuit brought by a Darien, Connecticut parish which was seeking to remove its Rector, Rev. George Kovoor, on the ground that he made material misrepresentations of his credentials when he applied for employment.  Prior to the filing of the lawsuit, the parent church had stepped in and attempted to resolve the dispute between the parish and Kavoor, ordering that each party take certain steps. When the parish failed to take the steps called for, the parent church dissolved the parish and converted it into a Worshiping Community under direct supervision of the Bishop. The court held that it must defer to the decisions of the parent Episcopal Church:

Neutral principals of law can be applied to church disputes. Herein the plaintiffs claim common-law employment contract law is such a neutral principle of law that should be applied. Applying those provisions would relitigate the three decisions already issued by the Episcopal Church as to the St. Paul's/Kovoor Rector situation. In this court's opinion that would cause the Superior Court to examine the internal workings and polity of the Episcopal Church in Connecticut....

The court finds the March 2016 employment relationship... is religious in nature. The court finds that adjudicating the particular claims and defenses in this case will require the court to intervene into a religious institution's exclusive right to decide matters pertaining to doctrine and/or its internal governance or organization.... 

This court finds that the nature of a relief being sought in this case would entangle the Superior Court of the State of Connecticut into matters of religious hiring, religious practices and church polity. The court notes that there is no claim in this litigation concerning the title to the real property currently occupied by the Worshipping Community and formerly by St. Paul's Parish of Darien, Connecticut.

Reporting on the decision Virture Online says that St. Paul's is now operating as a state-chartered ecclesiastical society, unconnected to the Episcopal Church.

Pro-Life Pregnancy Center Challenges City's Required Disclosures

Suit was filed in a Connecticut federal district court yesterday challenging the constitutionality of a Hartford (CT) Ordinance that requires pregnancy resource centers to make required disclosures on signs, websites and when patients make appointments.  Facilities must make the disclosures if they do not have licensed medical providers on the premises to directly supervise all services.  The complaint (full text) in Caring Families Pregnancy Services, Inc. v. City of Hartford, (D CT. filed 4/18/2019), alleges that the Ordinance is drafted to cover only pro-life pregnancy resource centers, and requires statements that incorrectly imply that the facilities are not qualified to provide the services they offer. The complaint contends:

The practical result of enforcing the Ordinance’s Compelled Speech provision would be not only to inhibit a religious ministry from furthering its mission and message but also to force religious speakers to speak messages with misleading, confusing and negative implications....

Hartford is intent on interfering with certain views about life, pregnancy, and motherhood. Hartford has thus crafted a speaker-based, viewpoint-based law targeting the speech only of speakers espousing certain pro-life moral, religious, and philosophical beliefs.

ADF issued a press release announcing the filing of the lawsuit.

Connecticut Diocese Settles Abuse Claims For $3.5M

The Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut announced yesterday that it has settled lawsuits filed last year by five victims of clerical sexual abuse.  The Maronite Order was involved in one of the cases.  The abuse took place almost 30 years ago.  The cases were settled through mediation for a total of $3.5 million. Most of the cost was covered by the Diocese's insurance. CT Post reports on the settlements.

Connecticut RFRA Does Not Immunize Against Employment Discrimination Suits

In Trinity Christian School v. Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities,  (CT Sup. Ct., Aug. 7, 2018 [official release date]), the Connecticut Supreme Court held that the state's Religious Freedom Restoration Act does not confer complete immunity to religious institutions for employment discrimination suits, and does not operate as a jurisdictional bar to such actions. Thus an interlocutory appeals of an administrative agency's refusal to dismiss a suit is not permitted.

Sacristan's Suit Dismissed On Ministerial Exception Grounds

In Vosney v. Archdiocese of Hartford, 2017 Conn. Super. LEXIS 4633 (CT Super., Oct. 13, 2017), a Connecticut trial court dismissed on "ministerial exception" grounds a suit by a former administrative assistant and sacristan of a Catholic Church in Connecticut. Plaintiff had claimed that his hours of employment were severely reduced as retaliation for his opposing discriminatory employment practices.

Chabad Gets Partial Win Under RLUIPA In Long-Running Suit

In a case that has wound its way through the courts for nearly ten years, this week a Connecticut federal district court gave a partial victory to the Orthodox Jewish Chabad organization which is seeking to expand a residential building it purchased in an area zoned as an Historic District.  In Chabad Lubavitch of Litchfield County, Inc. v. Borough of Litchfield, Connecticut, (D CT, Nov. 1, 2017), a Connecticut federal district court held that the Lichtfield Historic District Commission's denial of a Certificate of Appropriateness for the planned expansion placed a substantial burden on the religious exercise of Chabad in violation of the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act.  However, the court concluded that Chabad needs to submit revised plans that eliminates the portion of the expansion that would serve as a residence for the rabbi. (See prior related posting.) [Thanks to Dan Dalton for the lead.]

Vaccination of Children In Temporary State Custody Over Parental Religious Objection Is Not Authorized

In In re Elianah T.-T., (CT Sup. Ct., Aug. 15, 2017), the Connecticut Supreme Court held that the state's Commissioner of Children and Families is not authorized to require vaccination of children who are in temporary custody of the state where parents object to the vaccination. Here the parents' objection was based on religious beliefs. The statute allowing the Commissioner to authorize medical treatment of children in temporary state custody is not broad enough to include authorizing preventive care. Justice Rogers joined by Justice Eveleigh filed a concurring opinion.  AP reports on the decision.

Catholic School Teacher Stripped of Tenure May Sue

In Mis v. Fairfield College Preparatory School, 2017 Conn. Super. LEXIS 3741 (CT Super., June 20, 2017), a Connecticut trial court refused to dismiss a suit by a tenured teacher at a Jesuit prep school whose employment was terminated by the president of the school. The president insisted that teacher Jason Mis engaged in "moral misconduct" when he took an unauthorized ride in a golf cart at a country club during a fundraising fashion show for the school.  Mis requested a committee hearing on his dismissal, as provided for in the school's handbook.  The hearing committee concluded that Mis had not engaged in moral misconduct, and that termination of his tenure was not supported.  Nevertheless the school terminated Mis, who then sued for breach of contract and defamation.  The court rejected the school's attempt to raise the ministerial exception as a bar to jurisdiction.  It went on to hold that the suit may be adjudicated using neutral principles of law without deciding between competing definitions of moral misconduct.

1st Amendment Requires Dismissal of Some Priest Sexual Abuse Allegations

In Roy v. Norwich Roman Catholic Diocesan Corp., 2017 Conn. Super. LEXIS 774 (CT Super., April 24, 2017), plaintiff sued claiming that from 1990 to 1996 when he served as an altar boy at a Pomfret, Connecticut Catholic church he was sexually assaulted hundreds of times by a now-deceased priest, Fr. Paul Herbert.  While the trial court permitted plaintiff to move ahead on a number of his claims, it dismissed three of them on the ground that these would impermissibly entangle the court in matters of discipline, faith, internal organization, or ecclesiastical rule, custom, or law. The allegations that were dismissed were that the church failed to adequately evaluate the mental fitness of Herbert to serve as a Catholic priest, and the allegation that plaintiff suffered emotional and spiritual loss, substantially affecting his belief in his faith. The court held that plaintiff's other claims, such as the failure to adequately train and supervise Herbert, can be decided by applying neutral principles of law.

Court Orders Further Hearing In Suit By Church Member Challenging His Expulsion

In Campbell v. Shiloh Baptist Church, 2016 Conn. Super. LEXIS 3277 (CT Super. Ct., Dec. 1, 2016), plaintiff Thedress Campbell claims that Shiloh Baptist Church and its pastor removed him from the membership list and barred him from the church without following the church's bylaws.  Campbell had questioned expenditures by the pastor and had reported asbestos in the church to state authorities.  The Connecticut trial court held in part:

Although the Connecticut Supreme Court has articulated a preference for the application of the neutral principles approach in property disputes, it has not had occasion to articulate whether such an approach is to be followed in the resolution of other types of internal church conflicts. This court believes that it would....

... [T]he Constitution and Bylaws of the Church vests the authority for the expulsion or dismissal of members in the membership or congregation of the Church.... [T]he court is not deprived by the first amendment of jurisdiction to resolve whether the plaintiff was in fact expelled from the Church because this decision is not so intertwined with religious principles that it can make this determination without interfering with a legitimate claim to the free exercise of religion. Such an issue may be resolved in the present case by the application of neutral principles of law, here those of the secular laws of corporations. The evidence presented to the court did not address whether the voice of the Church was given expression by vote of its membership.... [T]herefore the court orders that the hearing be continued for the limited purpose of determining whether the Church had actually spoken, or whether the ... letter [informing him of his dismissal] was an ultra vires act of Pastor Porter and Deacon Jones.

Interlocutory Appeal Unavailable In Ministerial Exception Case

In Trinity Christian School v. Commission on Human Rights & Opportunities, 2016 Conn. Super. LEXIS 2256 (CT Super. Ct., Aug. 22, 2016), a Connecticut trial court dismissed an interlocutory appeal from a decision of the state Commission on Human Rights.  In the case, a Commission referee refused to dismiss a pregnancy discrimination claim brought by an employee against Trinity Christian School.  The school appealed claiming that it is immune from liability under Connecticut's Religious Freedom Restoration Act.  The court held however that any defense the school has is under the ministerial exception doctrine, which is an affirmative defense to liability.  Therefore an interlocutory appeal is not available. The court rejected the school's argument that merely requiring it to defend the case with an affirmative defense would impose a burden on religious belief.

Court Refuses To Dismiss Minister's Suit Saying Ministerial Exception Is Not A Jurisdictional Bar

In McKnight v. Old Ship of Zion Missionary Baptist Church, 2016 Conn. Super. LEXIS 2065 (CT Super., July 28, 2016), a Connecticut appellate court held that it is bound by language in a footnote of the U.S. Supreme Court's Hosanna-Tabor decision that "the [ministerial] exception operates as an affirmative defense to an otherwise cognizable claim, not a jurisdictional bar."  The Connecticut court thus refused to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction a suit by a minister for lost wages and benefits against the church that previously employed him.

Suit Charges Rabbi With Sexual Abuse of High School Boy

AP reports on a federal court lawsuit filed yesterday in Connecticut by 28-year old Eliyahu Mirlis against Rabbi Daniel Greer and the Jewish high school and elementary school that the rabbi heads.  The suit alleges that between 2001 and 2005 Rabbi Greer (then in his 60's) forced plaintiff to engage in sexual acts with him. The suit alleges that the sexual assaults took place on school property, at Greer's home and elsewhere. Greer is a graduate of Princeton and Yale Law School.  In 2002 he testified before the state legislature in opposition to same-sex unions.  He was also previously a member of the New Haven police commissioners' board.  The suit also alleges that the schools allowed the abuse to go on for years, and that Greer abused at least one other boy.

FFRF Sues Connecticut City Over Refusal To Allow Winter Solstice Banner

A suit was filed two weeks ago by the Freedom From Religion Foundation challenging the refusal by Shelton, Connecticut authorities to allow FFRF to place a Winter Solstice display in a city park. The complaint (full text) in Freedom From Religion Foundation v. City of Shelton, Connecticut, (D CT, filed 3/22/2016) alleges that the city allows the American Legion to place a "heralding angels" religious display in Constitution Park every Christmas season. However the city refused to allow FFRF to put up a banner reading in part: "At this season of the Winter Solstice, let reason prevail. There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell...." The city thought the banner would be offensive to many. The complaint alleges free speech and equal protection violations.  FFRF issued a press release announcing the filing of the federal lawsuit. Yesterday WSHU News had a longer report on the lawsuit.

RLUIPA Challenge Settled; Soup Kitchen Gets Permit To Operate

JDSupra reported yesterday on the settlement of three related RLUIPA lawsuits that were filed against the City of Norwich, Connecticut by St. Vincent de Paul Place, a ministry of The Polish Roman Catholic Congregation.  The suits sought authorization to continue to operate a soup kitchen and food pantry, and offer related services, at the site of a former parochial school. The Stipulated Judgment (full text) in St. Vincent de Paul Place, Norwich, Inc. v. City of Norwich, (D CT, Feb. 12, 2016), provides that the city will issue a special permit, subject to specified hours of operation, to the church.  The city commission approved the settlement at a public meeting, despite continued opposition from neighbors. City commissioners did not want to risk liability for the church's legal fees that the city would have incurred if it continued to litigate and ultimately lost. (See prior related posting.)

Parents Can Move Ahead With Claims Their Daughters Were Lured Into Religious Cult At School

In Doe v. Mastoloni, (D CT, Feb. 12, 2016), a Connecticut federal district court ruled that parents whose three high-school age daughters were allegedly indoctrinated into a religious cult by three Spanish teachers and a counselor at their high school can file an amended complaint to pursue a number of claims.
The court held that plaintiffs had alleged enough to move ahead with claims that the school violated the Free Exercise and Establishment Clauses and the equal protection clause, that they interfered with parental rights to raise children in the religion of their choice, and with familial associational rights. It also allowed plaintiffs to move ahead with claims against the Board of Education alleging Monell liability. The court dismissed various other claims. (See prior related posting.)