Title VII Suit Against Church Body Can Move Ahead

In Edley-Worford v. Virginia Conference of the United Methodist Church, (ED VA, Dec. 30, 2019), a Virginia federal district court refused to dismiss a Title VII claim by the former Director of Inclusivity and Lay Leadership Excellence in a church organization.  Plaintiff, an African American woman, claimed she was given an unfair workload in relation to those of her Caucasian co-workers and was fired when she complained to the Board of Laity and Personnel Committee. Defendants unsuccessfully raised defenses of the ecclesiastical abstention doctrine and the ministerial exception doctrine.

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.

Fired Teacher Sues Saying Requirements On Pronouns For Transgender Students Violated His Rights

A Virginia high school teacher filed suit yesterday in a Virginia state trial court challenging his firing for refusing to use male pronouns to refer to a transgender student in his French class.  The complaint (full text) in Vlaming v. West Point School Board, (VA Cir. Ct., filed 10/1-/2019), claims that the teacher's free speech and free exercise rights, as well as other rights, were violated. Plaintiff contends that the case is

about whether the government may force [plaintiff] to express ideas about human nature, unrelated to the school's curriculum, that he believes are false.

Plaintiff also contends that

[his] views and expression related to gender identity, would require [him] to violate his sincerely held religious beliefs.

Washington Post reports on the lawsuit.

Virginia School Board Expands Non-Discrimination Policy

The Stafford County, Virginia school board yesterday voted 4-3 to update its anti-discrimination policy to cover discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, political affiliation, religion, sex, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, marital status, mental or physical disability, genetic information, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other characteristic prohibited by state and/or federal law. (Full text of updated policy). As reported by Shareblue Media, the expanded policy resulted from the school's handling of an active shooter drill last year. While other students were sent to wait in their locker rooms, the transgender student was left to wait in the gym because staff did not know which locker room to assign her to.

Suit Challenges Virginia Fair Housing Act Provision Barring Religious Language In Ads

Suit was filed in a Virginia state trial court yesterday challenging a provision in the state's Fair Housing Code which provides that advertisements using "words or symbols associated with a particular religion.... shall be prima facie evidence of an illegal preference under this chapter which shall not be overcome by a general disclaimer." The complaint (full text) in Carter v. Virginia Real Estate Board, (VA Cir. Ct., filed 8/14/2019) contends that realtor Hadassah Hubbard Carter's free exercise, free speech and due process rights were infringed when the Virginia Real Estate Board claimed that she had violated the Fair Housing Code by use of a religious phrase in her e-mail signature line, and a Biblical quotation and a recitation of her religious beliefs on her business website. ACLJ issued a press release announcing the filing of the lawsuit.

Court Rejects School's Transgender Bathroom Restrictions

In Grimm v. Gloucester County School Board, (ED VA, Aug. 9, 2019). a Virginia federal district court held that a school system violated Title IX and the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment when it prevented a transgender male student from using rest rooms that correspond with his gender identity. The court rejected the school's argument that its policy is substantially related to protection of student privacy.  The court also issued a permanent injunction requiring the school to update the student's school records to reflect the male gender listed on the student's updated birth certificate. Washington Post reports on the decision.

Senior Community Management Sued Over Ban on Bible Study Groups and Public Prayer

A lawsuit was filed this week in a Virginia federal district court by a retired pastor and his wife against a senior living community where they lived.  The complaint (full text) in Hauge v. Community Realty Company, Inc., (ED VA, filed 5/21/2019), alleges that the community's management discriminated against plaintiffs on the basis of religion by acceding to demands of other residents to bar plaintiffs' followers from publicly saying grace before their meals, and prohibiting plaintiffs from hosting Bible Study anywhere in the living complex.  The suit contends that management's actions violated federal and state fair housing laws.  First Liberty issued a press release announcing the filing of the lawsuit.

Jan. 16 Is Religious Freedom Day

Today (Jan. 16) is Religious Freedom Day-- the 233rd anniversary of the enactment of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom. On Tuesday, President Trump issued a Presidential Proclamation calling on Americans "to commemorate this day with events and activities that remind us of our shared heritage of religious liberty and that teach us how to secure this blessing both at home and around the world."  The Proclamation says in part:

Unfortunately, the fundamental human right to religious freedom is under attack.  Efforts to circumscribe religious freedom — or to separate it from adjoining civil liberties, like property rights or free speech — are on the rise.  Over time, legislative and political attacks on religious freedom have given way to actual violence.  Last October, we witnessed a horrific attack on the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania — the deadliest attack on the Jewish community in our Nation’s history.  Tragically, attacks on people of faith and their houses of worship have increased in frequency in recent years.

Court Not Barred From Adjudicating Church Merger

In Pure Presbyterian Church of Washington v. Grace of God Presbyterian Church, (VA Sup. Ct., Aug. 16, 2018), the Virginia Supreme Court affirmed a trial court's judgment enforcing a merger agreement between two local Korean speaking Presbyterian churches. Seven months after the congregations had been worshiping together, one of the congregations attempted to withdraw from the merger. The other congregation sued to validate the merger. The Supreme Court rejected the argument that it lacked jurisdiction under the ecclesiastical abstention doctrine, saying in part:

There is nothing inherently ecclesiastical about an agreement to merge two entities.  Although a dispute over the existence or effect of a merger agreement could turn on questions of church doctrine, that is not the case here. Contract law principles are “neutral principles” of law that courts can employ to resolve a dispute between churches. Whether a church voted to merge is a question of fact that does not require a court to resolve an “ecclesiastical” question. Although the merger agreement spelled out who would continue to serve as pastor and which entity would survive, neither of the parties, nor the court, relied on any theological or ecclesiastical principles to resolve the issue of whether the churches agreed to merge and whether Grace Presbyterian honored its commitment under the merger agreement.

Suit Over Charlottesville Neo-Nazi Rally May Proceed

In Sines v. Kessler, (WD VA, July 9, 2018), a Virginia federal district court, in a 62-page opinion, held that a group of Charlottesville residents can move ahead with most of their claims for injuries growing out of the racist and anti-Semitic August 2017 "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville. The court summarized its opinion:

In 1871, Congress passed a law “directed at the organized terrorism in the Reconstruction South[.]” ... 42 U.S.C. § 1985. Over a hundred and forty years later ... the Defendants ..., including the Ku Klux Klan, various neo-Nazi organizations, and associated white supremacists, held rallies in Charlottesville, Virginia. Violence erupted.... Plaintiffs, allege that this violence was no accident. Instead, they allege the Defendants violated the 1871 Act and related state laws by conspiring to engage in violence against racial minorities and their supporters. The Defendants retort that they were simply engaged in lawful, if unpopular, political protest and so their conduct is protected by the First Amendment. While ultimate resolution of what happened at the rallies awaits another day, the Court holds the Plaintiffs have plausibly alleged the Defendants formed a conspiracy to commit the racial violence that led to the Plaintiffs’ varied injuries. Accordingly, the Plaintiffs’ claims largely survive, although one Defendant is dismissed and other claims are pared down.

WTVR reports on the decision.

Muslim Woman Sues Under Title VII Over Failure To Accommodate Hijab

A lawsuit was filed in a Virginia federal district court last week against a Hanover, Virginia health care facility by a Muslim woman whose employment as a nursing assistant was terminated because she insisted on wearing a hijab. The complaint (full text) in Brooks v. Medical Facilities of America, Inc., (ED VA, filed 5/31/2018) contends that the employer's refusal to provide a reasonable accommodation violated Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.  The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports on the lawsuit.

Doctor Says His Free Exercise Rights Are Infringed By Blocking Him From Assisting Protester

An unusual religious free exercise lawsuit was filed in a Virginia federal district court yesterday by Greg Gelburd, a physician who says that he continually practices his religious belief of providing medical assistance to those in need.  The complaint (full text) in Gelburd v. Christiansen, (WD VA, filed 6/16/2018), contends that the U.S. Forest Service is preventing him from providing medical assistance to a "tree sitting" protester who is attempting to block a pipeline from being constructed in the George Washington and Jefferson National Forest.  The protester, a woman who has become known as "Nutty", has, for the past six weeks, been preventing pipeline construction by occupying a "monopad" atop a tall pole in the pipeline path. Forest Service employees are attempting to end Nutty's protest by denying her food, water, various services and the ability to communicate with others. Dr. Gelburd claims that his rights under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act and the First Amendment's religion and speech clauses are infringed by the government's actions.  The Rutherford Institute issued a press release announcing the filing of the lawsuit.

4th Circuit Remands Transgender Bathroom Case

In Grimm v. Gloucester County School Board, (4th Cir., Aug. 2, 2017), the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals remanded to a Virginia federal district court a high-profile Title IX case on transgender rights, instructing the district court to determine whether the case has become moot.  At issue is whether a school board policy that required students to use rest rooms that correspond to their biological sex rather than their gender identity violates Title IX or the equal protection clause.  Previously the Supreme Court had granted certiorari, but when the Trump Administration withdrew Title IX guidance that had been issued by the Obama Administration, the Supreme Court remanded the case to the 4th Circuit for further consideration in light of that action. (See prior posting.) This past June, plaintiff graduated high school, so defendants contend that the case is now moot.  Plaintiff says he might still attend alumni or community events at the school.  It is also uncertain whether the school's bathroom policy extends to alumni as well as current students.  The 4th Circuit says that this requires further factual development by the district court. Reuters reports on the decision.

Church Sues Over Zoning Ruling On Use of Building For Christian School

A suit was filed this week in a Virginia federal district court challenging Spotsylvania County officials' contention that a Baptist church must obtain a special use permit in order for the education wing of the church to house an independent Christian high school whose mission is to provide classical education rooted in the tradition of Catholic teaching. The church says the school is one of its ministries and does not require further zoning approval. The complaint (full text) in Zoan Baptist Church v. Spotsylvania County, (ED VA, filed 6/28/2017) alleges that the county ordinance and the way it has been enforced infringes the church's rights under RLUIPA, as well as under the Establishment and Free Exercise clauses. Plaintiffs have also filed a Brief in Support of their motion for equitable relief. (Full text of brief).

Courthouse Renovation Discovery Creates Church-State Concern

A church-state controversy may be in the making in Nelson County, Virginia where $5 million renovation of a century-old historic courthouse has uncovered a religious inscription in the courtroom.  Today's Lynchburg News & Advance reports that as four coats of paint were stripped from the wood structure resting on columns supporting a courtroom balcony, the inscription "Virtus — Keep God’s Commandments — Veritas" was revealed.  Historians say the inscription may date from the 1830's when newly-formed Protestant denominations used the courthouse for worship services.

Mosque Sues Over Denial of Sewage Permit

As previously reported, last December the U.S. Department of Justice filed suit against Culpeper County, Virginia alleging that it violated the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act by denying a sewage permit application to the Islamic Center of Culpeper. Now the Islamic Center has filed its own lawsuit making similar allegations.  The complaint (full text) in Islamic Center of Culpeper v. County of Culpeper, Virginia, (WD VA, filed 3/9/2017) alleges:

The County of Culpeper ... has denied the Islamic Center of Culpeper... essential religious freedoms and equal protection under the law by refusing a “pump and haul” permit to enable ICC to construct a mosque on its own property. This Nation is founded on the principle that there will be religious freedom for all, but the County’s actions in this case violate that tenet by treating ICC differently than other similarly situated religious congregations.

WVIR reports on the lawsuit.

No Religious Discrimination In Suspension of Minister's Gym Membership

In Armstrong v. James Madison University, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 25014 (WD VA, Feb. 23, 2017), a Virginia federal magistrate judge recommended dismissing claims of religious discrimination and infringement of free exercise rights brought by Matthew Armstrong, a 65-year old Christian minister, after his alumnus membership in James Madison University Recreation gym was suspended. The suspension followed a complaint filed by a female student employee of the gym who claimed that comments made to her by Armstrong amounted to sexual harassment. Armstrong had told the student about his religious beliefs that allowed him to have a young wife, and asked her if she would be interested in getting to know him better with the eventual possibility of marriage.

Presidential Proclamation Recognizing Religious Freedom Day

President Obama yesterday issued a Proclamation designating January 16, 2017 as Religious Freedom Day.  The date is the 231st anniversary of the passage of the Virginia Statute for Establishing Religious Freedom in 1786. The President's Proclamation reads in part:

Religious freedom safeguards religion, allowing us to flourish as one of the most religious countries on Earth, but it also strengthens our Nation as a whole. Brave men and women of faith have challenged our conscience and brought us closer to our founding ideals, from the abolition of slavery to the expansion of civil rights and workers' rights. And throughout our history, faith communities have helped uphold these values by joining in efforts to help those in need -- rallying in the face of tragedy and providing care or shelter in times of disaster.

Feds Bring RLUIPA Suit Against County That Barred Mosque Construction

The U.S. Department of Justice announced yesterday that it has filed suit against Culpeper County, Virginia alleging that it violated the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act by denying a sewage permit application to the Islamic Center of Culpeper.  The complaint (full text) in United States v. County of Culpeper, VA, (WD VA, filed 12/12/2016) alleges that denial of the"pump and haul" permit prevents the Islamic Center from building a mosque on land it has purchased. The land's zoning classification permits religious land use by right.

4th Circuit Hears Employment Discrimination Case

The U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday heard oral arguments in Abeles v. Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority. (Audio of full oral argument.) In April, a Virginia federal district court rejected plaintiff's claim that she was discriminated against because of her Orthodox Jewish faith when she was suspended for five days after stayed off work on the last two days of Passover. (District court opinion.) Among the issues on appeal are whether plaintiff followed proper procedures in requesting time off, and whether RFRA and the Virginia Religious Freedom Act apply to the case.  Becket Fund has links to documents in the case.