Factional Dispute In Church Dismissed

 In New Covenant Church, Inc. v. Futch, (SD GA, February 5, 2021), a Georgia federal district court dismissed on qualified immunity, as well as other, grounds a dispute described by the court as follows:

This case arises from two feuding family factions which both lay claim to a small church in Brunswick, Georgia, one faction’s exclusion of the other from the church for a period of time, and several Brunswick police officers’ role in that exclusion....

Plaintiffs allege that Defendants [police officers] ... violated Plaintiffs’ First Amendment rights to free exercise of religion ... by: allowing nonmembers of New Covenant to seize and lock it down for ten weeks; threatening to arrest New Covenant members who entered the property; preventing New Covenant members from worshipping; and permitting the Armstrong sisters and others to steal New Covenant’s property. ...

The court found that the officers did not violate a clearly established constitutional right, saying in part:

Defendants ... did not “regulate religious beliefs,” but instead “impose[d] restrictions affecting religious conduct” by allowing the church to be locked up.... The second threshold test is also satisfied; the facts show that Defendants’ actions were not “aimed at impeding religion,” but were instead aimed at maintaining the peace while the parties settled a bitterly contested property dispute.

The court also dismissed due process, 4th Amendment and false imprisonment claims.

Abortion Rights Proponents Win In 4 Cases

A series of abortion rights rulings were handed down in the last few days:

In Sistersong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective v. Kemp, (ND GA, July 13, 2020), a Georgia federal district court permanently enjoined enforcement of Georgia's Living Infants Fairness and Equality (“LIFE”) Act which prohibits abortions after detection of a fetal heartbeat and recognizes unborn children as "natural persons."  Courthouse News Service reports on the decision.

In Memphis Center for Reproductive Health v. Slatery, (MD TN, July 13, 2020), a Tennessee federal district court issued a temporary restraining order barring enforcement of two bans on pre-viability abortions. One bans abortions when a fetal heartbeat is detectable. The other bans pre-viability abortions sought because of the race or sex of the fetus, or because of a Down syndrome diagnosis. ACLU issued a press release announcing the decision.

In American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists v. U.S. Food and Drug Administration, (D MD, July 13, 2020), a Maryland federal district court issued a preliminary injunction against enforcement during the COVID-19 public health emergency of in-person requirements that barred women seeking a medical abortion from obtaining mifepristone through a mail-order or retail pharmacy or to receive the medication by mail from their healthcare provider. The court concluded:

in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the In-Person Requirements cause an undue burden in violation of the Constitution, imposing a substantial obstacle on a large fraction of the relevant women seeking a medication abortion.

AP reports on the decision.

In Planned Parenthood of Maryland, Inc. v. Azar, (D MD, July 10, 2020), a Maryland federal district court enjoined implementation of HHS' "separate billing rule" which would have complicated the billing for abortion coverage in health insurance policies offered through state exchanges. As explained by the court:

HHS proposed that issuers would need to send two separate bills to the policyholder to comply with § 1303 (one bill for the portion of the premium attributable to non-Hyde abortion coverage and one for the rest of the premium), and instruct the policyholder to pay the premium attributable to non-Hyde abortion coverage in a separate transaction.

Health Affairs reports on the decision.

Certiorari Granted In College Student Religious Speech Case

Yesterday the U.S. Supreme Court granted review in Uzuegbunam v. Preczwski, (Docket No. 19-968, certiorari granted 7/9/2020). (Order List). The case grows out of a challenge to Georgia Gwinnett College's speech policies that led to a student being stopped from distributing religious literature on campus. Subsequently, the school changed its policies.  The U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals held that the change mooted plaintiff's claim for nominal damages. (Full text of 11th Circuit opinion.) Appellants challenge that conclusion. ADF issued a press release on the grant of review.

Georgia Enacts Hate Crime Law

As reported by the Atlanta Journal Constitution, the Georgia legislature yesterday gave final passage (legislative history) to HB 426 (full text) which provides enhanced criminal penalties for assault, battery, theft and criminal trespass motivated by the victim's actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender, mental disability, or physical disability.  The bill also provides for enhanced reporting of bias-motivated crimes. Gov. Brian Kemp says he will sign the bill.

Catholic Peace Activist Sentenced To Time Served For Trespassing

RNS reports:

A U.S. District Court judge has sentenced an 80-year-old Catholic peace activist to time already served for trespassing onto the Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base in St. Marys, Georgia, more than two years ago as part of a symbolic nuclear disarmament action.

Elizabeth McAlister, a former nun with the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary, had already served 17 months in a Glynn County Detention Center in Brunswick, Georgia, following the April 4, 2018 action.

In a video conference call on Monday (June 8), Judge Lisa Godbey Wood sentenced McAlister to time served, three years of probation and $25 a month in restitution until the amount of damage caused by the break-in — which the Navy estimated at $33,503 — is paid back in full by all the activists.

Settlement In Suit Against Georgia City By Anti-Gay Preacher

In Georgia, the Athens-Clarke County Commission has agreed to pay $25,000 in settlement of a lawsuit brought by an anti-LGBT street preacher who was escorted out of the 2019 Athens Pride Festival by police officers. City Dope reported  yesterday on the settlement.  Preacher Adam Bishop was evicted from the festival when he shouted anti-gay rhetoric through a megaphone. The settlement of  Bishop's free exercise and free speech claims also includes a commitment to train police officers on how to treat expressive activity.

Suit Challenges Student Government's Refusal To Fund Speech By Religious Figure

Suit was filed last week in a Georgia federal district court against officials at Georgia Tech after a Students for Life chapter was denied student activity fee funds to sponsor a talk by Dr. Martin Luther King's niece, Alveda King.  Student government denied funding because Ms. King has been involved in religious ministries and the religious aspects of her life could not be separated from the event which was to focus on civil rights and abortion. The complaint (full text) in Students for Life at Georgia Tech v. Regents of the University System of Georgia, (ND GA, filed 4/1/2020) alleges free speech violations (compelled speech and viewpoint discrimination), as well as due process and equal protection violations.  ADF issued a press release announcing the filing of the lawsuit.

Courts Rule On Virginia and Georgia Abortion Statutes

In Falls Church Medical Center, LLC v. Oliver, (ED VA, Sept. 30, 2019), a Virginia federal district court upheld some parts of Virginia's statute regulating abortions, but invalidated other parts, saying in part:

[E]nforcement of the ... Guidelines with respect to first trimester abortion procedures, and the requirement that non-surgical second trimester abortion procedures-up to the point of viability-be performed in outpatient surgical hospitals, present a substantial obstacle to women seeking an abortion and impose an undue burden on that right, in violation of the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.... On the other hand, evidence of the heightened potential for complications warrant the requirement that surgical abortion procedures during the second trimester should be performed in a hospital setting.

... [B]ased on a seamless line of authority, this Court cannot conclude that the Physician-Only law ... is either unduly burdensome or improvident when weighed against the State's well-recognized responsibility for ensuring safe abortion care.

... Plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate by a preponderance of the evidence that ... requiring a mandatory ultrasound and waiting period, amount to a substantial obstacle preventing a woman's access to abortion care in Virginia. Plaintiffs have further failed to show that the statute's informed consent requirement imposes an undue burden.

Undoubtedly, the requirement that abortion clinics submit to biennial inspection ... is burdensome for clinic personnel. However, it is no more burdensome than inspection requirements for other medical facilities that provide similar services....

AP reports on the decision.

In SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective v. Kemp, (ND GA, Oct. 1, 2019), a Georgia federal district court issued a preliminary injunction against enforcement of Georgia's statute that prohibits abortions after detection of a fetal heartbeat.  The court said in part:

Plaintiffs have therefore met their burden of showing that H.B. 481, in prohibiting abortions after a fetal heartbeat is detectable, would operate as “a substantial obstacle to a woman’s choice to undergo an abortion” in “a large fraction” of relevant cases.....

Furthermore, as discussed above in detail, the Supreme Court has repeatedly and unequivocally held that a State may not ban abortion prior to viability.

Center for Reproductive Rights issued a press release announcing the decision.

Nuclear Protesters' RFRA Defense Rejected

In United States v. Kelly, (SD GA, Aug. 26, 2019), a Georgia federal district court refused to dismiss indictments against seven Catholics who are members of the Plowshares Movement, an activist group opposed to nuclear weapons.  Defendants were indicted for trespass and destruction of government property after they broke into a highly secured Naval Submarine Base and in protest of nuclear weapons poured blood on the ground, hung banners and painted messages. Defendants contended that their actions were protected by the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The court said:

Because Defendants' actions at Kings Bay were exercises of their sincerely held religious beliefs that they should "take action in opposition to the presence of nuclear weapons at Kings Bay,"... Defendants' actions at Kings Bay were engaged in for religious reasons and were thus "religious exercises" within the meaning of RFRA....

It went on, however:

The government has established that it has compelling interests in the safety of those on Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base, the security of the government assets housed there, and the smooth operation of the base.

County Sued Over Zoning Denial To Faith-Based Recovery Program

Suit was filed in a Georgia federal district court last week by a ministry offering a faith-based residential program for men recovering from addiction alleging discriminatory action by a county zoning board. the complaint (full text) in Vision Warriors Church, Inc. v. Cherokee County Board of Commissioners, (ND GA, filed 7/15/2019) alleges that the county's denial of zoning approval for operation of plaintiff's recovery program violates the federal Fair Housing Act, the ADA, RLUIPA and the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection clause. ACLJ issued a press release announcing the filing of the lawsuit.

Georgia Institutes Investigation of Catholic Church Sex Abuse Claims

The Atlanta Journal Constitution reports that Georgia's Attorney General has announced an investigation into past sexual abuse claims in the Catholic Church. The investigation will be carried out by Georgia's Prosecuting Attorneys' Council. Atlanta Archbishop Wilton Gregory and Savannah Bishop Gregory Hartmayer both support the investigation. Other states have carried out similar investigations.

Suit Challenging End of School Yoga Program Moves Ahead

AP reports that a Georgia federal district court judge refused Friday to dismiss an Establishment Clause suit against the Cobb County (GA) School District. The suit alleges the school district ended a yoga program and transferred an elementary school assistant principal in response to parents who objected to the yoga program as inconsistent with their Christian religious beliefs.  The suit brought by former Bullard Elementary School assistant principal Bonnie Cole will now move to trial.  AP reports in part:

During the 2014-2015 school year, Cole said she implemented breathing and stretching exercises based on yoga and meditation in classrooms as a way of reducing stress and encouraging relaxation....

According to the lawsuit, upset parents held a 2016 prayer rally for ‘‘Jesus to rid the school of Buddhism.’’

UPDATE: Here is the full text of the opinion and additional pleadings in Cole v. Cobb County School District (ND GA, March 19, 2019).

Suit Against Atlanta Archdiocese For Past Sex Abuse

A lawsuit was filed in a Georgia state trial court yesterday against the Atlanta Catholic Archdiocese by a man who was the victim of priest sexual abuse over 40 years ago when he was 12 to 15 years old.  According to AP, the suit alleges:

The Archdiocese and Archbishop of Atlanta owed a duty of reasonable care to protect minor parishioners who were altar boys at St. Joseph’s church.

It also contends that the Archdiocese's failure to report the alleged abuse constituted a public nuisance.

Campus Pro-Life Speech Case Settled

An ADF press release reports that a settlement has been reached in Ratio Christi of Kennesaw State University v. Olens.  In the suit, a student group charged that the Georgia college limited its pro-life display to a small area set aside as a "speech zone." (See prior posting).  Under the settlement agreement, the school will eliminate its speech zone and students will be free to speak in all outdoor areas of the campus.  The school will also pay plaintiffs' attorneys' fees in the amount of $20,100.

Atlanta Agrees To $1.2M Settlement With Fired Fire Chief

A $1.2 million settlement has been reached in Cochran v. City of Atlanta, Georgia, the suit brought by a former Atlanta fire chief who was dismissed from his position over a book which he wrote.  The book, designed as a religious guide for men, called those who engage in extramarital or in homosexual sex "wicked" and "ungodly." A court found the city's pre-clearance rules for outside employment unconstitutional. (See prior posting.) The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that the settlement amount was approved by an 11-3 vote at Atlanta City Council meeting Monday.

Court Orders More Briefs On RFRA Defense By Peace Protesters

In an Order last week in United States v. Kelly, 2018 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 138195, (SD GA, Aug. 15, 2018), a Georgia federal magistrate judge instructed both sides to provide additional briefing on the "particularized issues raised by Defendants' RFRA defense" in the prosecution of peace activists for breaking into Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay. Defendants argue that their "symbolic disarmament" of nuclear weapons at the base was an exercise of their sincerely held Catholic beliefs.  In ordering additional briefs, the court said in part:

At the August 2, 2018 motions hearing, counsel for both the Government and Defendants represented to the Court that Defendants' RFRA claim as a defense to criminal prosecution was an issue of first impression and that the applicability of RFRA to federal criminal law was an open question.... Subsequent to the hearing, however, the Government filed Supplemental Briefing that acknowledged RFRA's applicability to criminal prosecutions and its availability as a defense.... The Government now contends that Defendants' actions ... were not religious in nature and ... even assuming they were, the Government contends it has a compelling interest in protecting Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay....

Brunswick News reports on the court's Order.

Short-Term Rental Ban Does Not Burden Rabbi's Religious Freedom

According to today's Savannah Morning News, a Savannah, Georgia state trial court judge has upheld against a religious freedom challenge Savannah's city ordinance prohibiting short-term vacation rentals in certain areas of the city.  Rabbi Arnold Belzer and his wife claim that they were acting in accordance with Jewish scripture and the tradition of hospitality in opening one bedroom in their home to guests from all over the world. The space was listed on Airbnb. The court, in ruling on a motion for a preliminary injunction, held that the zoning ordinance is not a substantial burden on the Belzers' religious freedom.

Christian Group Challenges College's Speech Zone Policy

A lawsuit was filed this week in a Georgia federal district court by a Christian apologetics club against administrators of Kennesaw State University challenging the school's speech zone policy.  The complaint (full text) in Ratio Christi of Kennesaw State University v. Olens, (ND GA, filed 2/20/2018) complains that the school would not allow the group to set up a pro-life display on the Campus Green.  Instead it limited the display to a small area set aside as a "speech zone." The suit alleges in part:

Defendants prohibit individual students from reserving space on campus and require registered student organizations (“RSO”) to submit reservation requests between three and thirty days in advance.... These policies give KSU officials unbridled discretion, both over whether to grant, deny, or modify an RSO’s reservation request and over whether and how much to charge in security fees, and they quarantine any expressive activities KSU officials deem “controversial” to the small, less accessible “speech zone.”

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

No Title VII Claim Based on "Perceived" Religion

In Cole v. Cobb County School District, (ND GA, Jan. 18, 2018), a Georgia federal district court dismissed Title VII religious discrimination claims brought by a school principal who was transferred to a low performing school far from her home after parents complained about her introduction of mindfulness practices, including yoga, at her school.  The principal is Christian, but parents complained to the school board falsely claiming that the she was a Buddhist and was attempting to indoctrinate their children with Buddhism.  The court held that Title VII does not cover discrimination or reverse discrimination claims based on an individual's perceived, rather than their actual, religion,  The court however did permit plaintiff to move ahead with her Establishment Clause claim.

Fired Atlanta Fire Chief Wins Challenge To Outside Employment Rules

In Cochran v. City of Atlanta, Georgia, (ND GA, Dec. 20, 2017), a Georgia federal district court gave a partial victory to a former Atlanta fire chief who was dismissed from his position over a book which he wrote.  The book, designed as a religious guide for men, called those who engage in extramarital or in homosexual sex "wicked" and "ungodly."  Plaintiff Kevin Cochran contends that he was fired because of his religious speech.  The city says Cochran was fired for ignoring the city's pre-clearance rules for outside employment, facilitating a public relations campaign against the mayor and the city, and also creating city vulnerability for employment discrimination claims. (See prior related posting.)

The court dismissed plaintiff's retaliation, free speech and free exercise claims.  However the court refused to dismiss plaintiff's challenges to the city's pre-clearance rules for outside employment.  The court granted plaintiff summary judgment on his prior restraint challenge to the pre-clearance rules, as well as on his claim that the rules are unconstitutional content-based restrictions that invite unbridled discretion by the city.  AP reports on the decision, indicating that the two sides have different views as to what issues remain to be determined in the case.