Mosque Loses Challenge To Zoning Denial

In Islamic Center of North Fulton, Inc. v. City of Alpharetta, Georgia, (ND GA, Jan. 25, 2012), a Georgia federal district court dismissed RLUIPA and federal constitutional challenges to Alpharetta's refusal to give zoning approval to the Islamic Center's replacement of its present worship structure with 2 buildings-- a mosque and a smaller community hall.  The court held:

Simply because a religious organization’s facility is too small does not give the organization “free reign to construct on its lot a building of whatever size it chooses, regardless of the limitations imposed by the zoning ordinances.” ... The mere fact that a church, mosque or synagogue has outgrown its current facilities does not mean that it is substantially burdened under RLUIPA.

Rejecting the mosque's RLUIPA nondiscrimination claim, the court concluded that plaintiff had failed to identify similarly situated comparators.  The court also rejected the claim under RLUIPA that special use and conditional use permit requirements amount to unreasonable limits on religious structures. WSBTV News reports on the decision.

Jewish Group Wins Connecticut Zoning Appeal

In Chabad Chevra, LLC v. City of Hartford, (CT Super. Ct., Dec. 15, 2011), a Connecticut trial court reversed a cease-and-desist order that had been issued by the Hartford (CT) zoning enforcement officer. The Zoning Board of Appeals had affirmed the order that prevented a Jewish group from using as a religious facility a building it had purchased near the University of Hartford campus. The court found that the property had been used by it previous owners, a Baptist group, for offices, residential facilities and religious services.  The court concluded that "the only apparent distinction between the activities of the prior owner and Chabad Chevra is their religion, Christianity and Judaism." Hartford Business yesterday, pointing out anti-Semitic overtones in the original denial, says that the city has decided not to appeal.

State Department Posts Discussion of Role of Religion In U.S. Foreign Policy

Since 2010, the U.S. State Department has produced a series of online videos labeled Conversations with America. The videos feature  live interviews with the leaders of nongovernmental organizations interacting with State Department’s leadership. The latest installment, which appeared earlier this week, is on the Role of Religion in U.S. Foreign Policy.  It features Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, Suzan Johnson Cook and Institute for Global Engagement president Chris Seiple in a conversation moderated by Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Cheryl Benton. Both the video and a transcript of it are available online.

IRS Launches New Online Search Tool To Locate Non-Profits

Lexology reports that earlier this week the Internal Revenue Service launched a new online search tool to help members of the public locate information about tax-exempt organization. Exempt Organization Select Check allows users to locate organizations that are eligible to receive tax-deductible charitable contributions; organizations that have had their tax-exempt status automatically revoked because they have not filed Form 990 returns or notices annually for three years; and organizations that have filed a Form 990-N annual electronic notice (e-Postcard).

4th Circuit Dismisses RFRA Suit By "Enemy Combatant" Jose Padilla

In Lebron v. Rumsfeld, (4th Cir., Jan. 23, 2012), the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected claims for a declaratory judgment, injunction and nominal damages brought by Jose Padilla, a U.S. citizen who was convicted on terrorism related charges, including providing material support to Al Qaeda. Padilla's lawsuit challenged his previous military detention as an "enemy combatant." One of Padilla's claims was brought under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. He alleged that RFRA authorizes him to sue officials in their individual capacities for damages for burdening his free exercise of religion when they held him in military custody.  The court rejected that claim, saying:

Courts have long been reluctant to interpret statutes in ways that allow litigants to interfere with the mission of our nation’s military.... [W]e have no indication that Congress even considered the prospect of RFRA actions brought by enemy combatants with anything like the care that it has customarily devoted to matters of such surpassing sensitivity. The foregoing discussion underscores what we believe are considerable obstacles to applying RFRA in this context. But we need not go so far as to announce such a proposition in its most absolute terms.... At the very least, the defendants transgressed no clearly established law in this area, and to hold them personally liable in the absence of clear notice that such a prospect was even possible would run counter to the reasons that ... [qualified] immunity exists.

Reuters reports on the decision.

Utah High Court Says Objections To Religion At Voir Dire Are Procedurally Barred

In Taylor v. State of Utah, (UT Sup. Ct., Jan. 24, 2012), the Utah Supreme Court held that two claims alleging improper use of religion in voir dire during the penalty phase of a murder trial were procedurally barred from being raised because the objections could have been raised in a prior proceeding. Defendant Von Lester Taylor who was sentenced to death claimed that one juror should have been excused for cause because of his belief in the doctrine of blood atonement.  He also claimed that the prosecution wrongly used its peremptory strikes to reject jurors who were not members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. AP reports on the decision.

Added Saturday Evening Nevada Caucus Will Accommodate Sabbath Observing Jews

Nevada's Republican Party Caucuses to choose delegates to the presidential nominating convention are scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 4. AP reported this week that Clark County (Las Vegas area) officials have added a special 7:00 p.m. evening caucus to accommodate Jewish voters who observe the Sabbath. The decision came after billionaire casino owner, Sheldon Adelson, who is active in Jewish causes, complained about the Sabbath conflict.  Adelson and his wife Miriam, majority owners of the Las Vegas Sands Corp., have contributed $10 million to Winning Our Future, a super-PAC that supports Newt Gingrich.  (Bloomberg News). The special evening caucus will be held at the Adelson Educational Campus, a Jewish school founded by the Adelsons. A similar Saturday conflict occurred in 2008, but instead of holding evening caucuses the Nevada Democratic Party placed caucus sites near religious neighborhoods and synagogues so people could walk, and precinct captains were educated to write down information on behalf of observant Jews instead of asking them to sign-in and write themselves. The Republicans apparently also attempted to educate precinct captains on the issue when they became aware of it in 2008. (See prior posting).

EEOC Releases 2011 Enforcement and Litigation Statistics

The EEOC yesterday released its Enforcement and Litigation Statistics for 2011. A record number of religious discrimination claims were filed-- 4,151 (4.2% of all employment discrimination claims filed for the year). 4,608 religious discrimination claims were resolved in some fashion during the year. In 2,737 of those, the EEOC found no reasonable cause to believe that discrimination had occurred.  1,012 claims were closed for various administrative reasons. [Thanks to Blog from the Capital for the lead.]

Romney Tax Returns Raise Questions About Tithing Rules

Kai Petainen writing in Forbes says that Mitt Romney's recently released tax returns raise interesting technical questions about the Mormon Church's tithing rules. These include: is the 10% obligation based on adjusted gross income or taxable income, and can a failure to meet the 10% threshold in one year be made up by contributing more than 10% in the following year? Romney's returns show that for 2010-11 combined, he contributed 9.7% of adjusted gross income, but 12.8% of taxable income.

Cert. Filed In Classroom Banners Display Controversy

The Thomas More Law Center announced yesterday that it has filed a petition for certiorari (full text) with the U.S. Supreme Court in Johnson v. Poway Unified School District, (cert. filed. 1/19/2012).  In the case, the 9th Circuit rejected claims by a high school calculus teacher that his California school district violated his free speech rights, as well as the Establishment Clause and Equal Protection clause, when it required him to remove large banners he had posted in his classroom that carried historic and patriotic slogans, all mentioning God or the Creator. (See prior posting.)

House Passes 2 Bills On Religious Additions To War Memorials

AP reports that the U.S. House of Representatives yesterday passed, and sent to the Senate, two bills authorizing religious symbols on war memorials.  HR 290 permits inclusion of religious symbols on military memorials established or acquired by the United States, or memorials in which the American Battle Monuments Commission was involved. U-T San Diego points out that this is an attempt to save the much-litigated Mt. Soledad Cross. (See prior posting.) The second bill passed by the House yesterday,  HR 2070 requires installation at the Washington, D.C. World War II Memorial of a plaque containing Franklin Roosevelt's D-Day morning prayer.

Jay Leno Joke Using Golden Temple Photo Spurs Diplomatic Complaint, Lawsuit

Politico reports that a Jan. 19 late night skit by TV comedian Jay Leno has angered the Sikh community. Joking about the homes of the Republican presidential candidates, Leno showed photos of Newt Gingrich’s estate in Virginia and Ron Paul’s ranch house in Texas. He then referred to Mitt Romney's summer home but instead showed a photo of the sacred Golden Temple in Punjab, India. According to NDTV, the Indian government yesterday complained to US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia about the Leno skit.  At a press briefing on Monday (full text), before any formal contact from the Indian government, a State Department spokesperson in response to a question emphasized U.S. respect for Sikhs, but said that Leno's remarks are constitutionally protected. Meanwhile yesterday TMZ reports that a California man, Dr. Randeep Dhillon, has filed a libel suit against Leno, claiming that he falsely portrayed the Sikh religion's holiest place as a vacation resort owned by a non-Sikh.

NYPD Training Included Film Alleging Current Covert Jihad

Today's New York Times reports in a front page story that the 72-minute film, The Third Jihad, was shown on continuous loop to New York City police officers during training sign-in, and the training medical and administrative orientation process. The film, produced by the Clarion Fund, was shown for a period between 3 months and one year to at least 1,489 police officers. The film claims that there is a covert third Jihad taking place throughout the West today. In the film, a doctored photo shows an Islamic flag flying over the White House.

Washington State Likely To Approve Same-Sex Marriage

AP reported  yesterday that there are now enough votes in the Washington state legislature to pass SB 6239, a bill that legalizes same-sex marriage. The crucial 25th vote in the state Senate will come from state senator Mary Margaret Haugen who, in an announcement yesterday, said in part:

I have very strong Christian beliefs, and personally I have always said when I accepted the Lord, I became more tolerant of others. I stopped judging people and try to live by the Golden Rule. This is part of my decision. I do not believe it is my role to judge others, regardless of my personal beliefs.... For me personally, I have always believed in traditional marriage between a man and a woman.....

But this issue isn’t about just what I believe. It’s about respecting others, including people who may believe differently than I. It’s about whether everyone has the same opportunities for love and companionship and family and security that I have enjoyed.

Gov. Chris Gregoire has publicly endorsed the proposal which also appears to have sufficient support in the state House of Representatives to pass in that chamber. Nevertheless, the Washington State Catholic Conference has issued a public statement (full text) urging retention of the definition of marriage as a union between a man and a woman. The statement argues in part:

Upholding the present definition of marriage does not depend on anyone’s religious beliefs. Washington State’s present law defining marriage as "a civil contract between a male and a female" is grounded not in faith, but in reason and the experience of society. It recognizes the value of marriage as a bond of personal relationships, but also in terms of the unique and irreplaceable potential of a man and woman to conceive and nurture new life, thus contributing to the continuation of the human race. A change in legislation would mean that the state would no longer recognize the unique sacrifices and contributions made by these couples, thereby adding to the forces already undermining family life today.

Canadian Tax Trial Analyzes Structure of FLDS Community

Canada's Income Tax Act, Sec. 143, sets out special tax rules for communal religious organizations.  Businesses they conduct that support the members of a religious congregation are treated as if earned by a trust whose beneficiaries are the members of the congregation.  As reported yesterday by Canadian Press, in Vancouver, British Columbia, a trial is under way to determine whether this provision applies to the polygamous FLDS community of Bountiful, B.C. under the leadership of Winston Blackmore.  Blackmore claims that Bountiful split from the U.S. based FLDS church in 2002 and that its residents make up a separate religious congregation so that income from businesses in the community should be spread for tax purposes over all the residents.  Canadian tax officials, on the other hand, say that Blackmore is merely the patriarch of a large polygamous family, and they recomputed Blackmore's tax filings for several years to add $1.5 million to Blackmore's income. They say that Sec. 143 was designed only for closed communes such as Hutterite colonies. The trial is expected to produce testimony on details of Bountiful's structure and organization, and the beliefs of its residents.

Minnesota Appeals Court Remands Challenge To State Defense of Marriage Act

In Benson v. Alverson, (MN Ct. App., Jan. 23, 2012), three same-sex couples sued a county registrar for refusing to issue them marriage licenses, claiming that Minnesota's Defense of Marriage Act (MDOMA) violates their rights under the Minnesota constitution.  The appeals court held that the trial court properly dismissed the state as a party to the lawsuit, and correctly found that MDOMA did not violate the Single Subject clause or the Freedom of Conscience protections of the state constitution.  However, the appeals court remanded the case for further proceeding, holding that the trial court had improperly dismissed equal protection, due process and freedom of association challenges to MDOMA.  AP reports on the decision.

In Egypt's New Parliament, Some Try To Modify Oath To Refer To "God's Law"

Egypt's newly elected 508-member parliament, the People's Assembly, met yesterday for the first time. Daily News Egypt reports that early in the session, which elected Freedom and Justice Party secretary general Saad Al-Katatny as speaker, controversy broke out over members who attempted to modify the constitutional oath administered to them. Salafi Al-Asala Party member, Mamdouth Ismail, and 15 other members added to the official oath calling for respect for the constitution and law, the phrase "as long as it does not contradict God's law." Some liberal members added to the oath saying they would serve the revolution's goals.

Cert. Denied In Challenge To Tax On Political Expenditures By Non-Profits

The U.S. Supreme Court today denied certiorari, refusing to grant review in Catholic Answers, Inc. v. United States, (Docket No. 11-511, cert. denied 1/23/2012). (Order List.) In the case, the 9th Circuit dismissed as moot a Catholic organization's challenge to the constitutionality of Section 4955 of the Internal Revenue Code. That section imposes an excise tax on political expenditures made by Section 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations.  (See prior posting.)

Yesterday Was 39th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade

Yesterday was the 39th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court case that legalized abortion nation wide.  Rallies by abortion opponents were held in Lafayette Park across from the White House. (CNN) The U.S. Conference of of Catholic Bishops announced the National Prayer Vigil For Life scheduled for yesterday and today at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington. Yesterday President Obama issued a Statement (full text) marking the anniversary, saying in part:

[W]e must remember that this Supreme Court decision not only protects a woman’s health and reproductive freedom, but also affirms a broader principle: that government should not intrude on private family matters.  I remain committed to protecting a woman’s right to choose and this fundamental constitutional right....[N]o matter what our views, we must stay united in our determination to prevent unintended pregnancies, support pregnant woman and mothers, reduce the need for abortion, encourage healthy relationships, and promote adoption.  And ... we must also continue our efforts to ensure that our daughters have the same rights, freedoms, and opportunities as our sons to fulfill their dreams.

Anti-Evolution Bills Begin To Be Introduced In 2012 State Legislatures

The National Center for Science Education reported last week that so far this year, six separate anti-evolution bills have been introduced in state legislatures-- one in Oklahoma, one in Indiana, two in New Hampshire and two in Missouri. Here are links to the bills:  Oklahoma SB 1742; Indiana SB 0089; New Hampshire HB1148 and HB1457; Missouri HB1227 and HB1276.