The Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, New York filed a petition for certiorari with the United States Supreme Court on Thursday, requesting an emergency injunction that would block COVID-19 restrictions on in-person church attendance. Though the Supreme Court previously rejected a similar challenge during the earlier stage of the pandemic, the Brooklyn Diocese may be banking on changing composition of the court boding a different outcome. The social distancing restrictions at issue in the latest challenged order, put in place by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) in October, limits church services to either 10 or 25 people, depending on the number of COVID-19 cases in the areas in which a particular church is located. The diocese now argues that the restriction constitutes a First Amendment violation, because numerous secular businesses are allowed to operate without any similar capacity restrictions. As the diocese points out in its petition, Cuomo has expressly acknowledged that these restrictions “are most impactful on houses of worship.” The diocese’s argument rests on its perceived inconsistency in regulations: “While this Executive Order effectively closes churches and other houses of worship, all businesses deemed ‘essential’ by the Governor—including everything from supermarkets to pet stores, huge hardware […]
