Preliminary Injunction Refused: Settlement In Mosque Zoning Dispute Stands

In Youkhanna v. City of Sterling Heights, (ED MI, June 28, 2017), a Michigan federal district court refused to issue a preliminary injunction to prevent enforcement of a consent judgment entered into by the city of Sterling Heights.  The consent judgment allows the American Islamic Community Center to construct a mosque on land in the city.  Plaintiffs live near the mosque site.  Some are Chaldean Christians form Iraq and one is an Assyrian Christian from Syria.  They allege that their religious groups in Iraq and Syria have been subjected to violence by ISIS.  The court held that plaintiffs had not shown a likelihood of success on their constitutional and statutory claims regarding the validity of the consent judgment and the conduct of the meeting at which it was approved. (See prior related posting.)