LOUISVILLE, Ky., April 11, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — This afternoon, U.S. District Court Judge Justin Walker granted a temporary restraining order (TRO) preventing Louisville, Kentucky Mayor Greg Fischer from blocking On Fire Church from holding drive-in services on Easter. The TRO was filed yesterday in the United States District Court…
A Conservative Houston Lawyer is Saying the COVID-19 Stay-Home Order Violates Rights
people raise arms at Christian music concert Houston lawyer Jared Woodfill, no stranger to controversial cases, is at it again with a legal challenge claiming Harris County’s COVID-19 stay-home order violates religious liberty rights. Woodfill has made headlines in the past by fighting against Houston’s LGBT anti-discrimination ordinance and objecting…
Lawyer says Colorado Springs church’s argument to stay open amid public health order isn’t valid
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Leaders at a Colorado Springs church said that they had the Constitutionally protected right to keep their in-person services despite a public health order, but a legal expert says that argument may not have merit. Colorado Springs Fellowship Church tells KRDO it is exercising its First…
Court delays arguments; religious liberty, abortion rulings await
WASHINGTON (BP) — The U.S. Supreme Court has paused part of its work in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) with decisions in important cases regarding religious liberty, sexuality and abortion still to be announced. The high court announced March 16 it has postponed oral arguments scheduled for March 23-25 and…
These Churches Refuse To Close Over COVID-19. Does the Constitution Protect Their Right To Remain Open?
State governments have responded to the COVID-19 pandemic by ordering residents to avoid gathering together in large groups, including gatherings held for the purpose of religious worship. Some churches are reportedly refusing to comply with such edicts and holding in-person religious services anyway. As the Associated Press reports : Rodney…
Professor Who Declined to Use Student’s Transgender Pronouns Appeals Dismissal of Lawsuit
An Ohio philosophy professor, disciplined by Shawnee State University for declining to use a transgender student’s preferred personal pronouns, is appealing the dismissal of his federal lawsuit against the university. Professor Nicholas Meriwether’s lawsuit argued that the Portsmouth, Ohio, university “denied him his right to exercise his religion under the…
A National Day of Prayer During a Mishandled Pandemic Is a National Day of Distraction
As the coronavirus continued to kill , hospitalize , and harm thousands of people this weekend, President Trump declared that Sunday was, rest assured, a National Day of Prayer. “We are a Country that, throughout our history, has looked to God for protection and strength in times like these,” he…
Thank God for Supreme Court’s look at same-sex foster parents
An anti-discrimination law designed to protect LGBTQ citizens but that forces a Catholic organization to violate its tenets is unconstitutional. A few years ago, an LGBTQ couple approached Bethany Christian Services and expressed an interest in becoming foster parents. Bethany Christian, which maintained a contract with the city of Philadelphia…
U.S. Supreme Court turns away religious bias claim against Walgreens
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday handed a victory to Walgreens, turning away an appeal by a fired former Florida employee of the pharmacy chain who asked not to work on Saturdays for religious reasons as a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. FILE PHOTO: A sign…
Religion can’t excuse discrimination. Bethel Christian Academy shouldn’t get state money.
Views expressed in opinion columns are the author’s own. Last week, a U.S. District Judge rightfully ruled against Christian private school Bethel Christian Academy, which claimed the state of Maryland violated its religious freedom after being excluded from a taxpayer-funded school voucher program. The state government pointed out Bethel failed…
Linda Greenhouse’s Distorted Attack on Religious Liberty
Linda Greenhouse’s online column yesterday bears the portentous title “The Supreme Court Nears the Moment of Truth on Religion.” Greenhouse warns ominously “about the growing threat that an increasingly weaponized free-exercise clause poses to civil society, along with the statutes meant to extend its reach.” If a “moment of truth”…
U.S. Supreme Court turns away religious bias claim against Walgreens
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday handed a victory to Walgreens, turning away an appeal by a fired former Florida employee of the pharmacy chain who asked not to work on Saturdays for religious reasons as a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. FILE PHOTO: A sign…
DOJ Backs Christian Photographer Who is Afraid Law Will ‘Force’ Her to Shoot Same-Sex Weddings
The US Department of Justice weighed in on a controversial Kentucky lawsuit this week, when they backed a Christian wedding photographer who is suing the city of Louisville over a law that could, potentially be used to “force” her to shoot same-sex weddings. The lawsuit first made headlines in November…
U.S. Supreme Court Turns Away Religious Bias Claim Against Walgreens
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday handed a victory to Walgreens, turning away an appeal by a fired former Florida employee of the pharmacy chain who asked not to work on Saturdays for religious reasons as a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The justices declined to…
Military court hearing at Liberty University sparks outcry from religious freedom group
Students walk on the campus of Liberty University in September 2019. A watchdog group advocating for religious freedom in the armed forces has accused Pentagon officials of “dropping a nuclear weapon on the Constitution” after a military court held a special session at Liberty University last week. In a strongly…
Supreme Court Nixes Religious Bias Claim for Walgreens Denying Saturdays-Off Request
Email This The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday handed a victory to Walgreens, turning away an appeal by a fired former Florida employee of the pharmacy chain who asked not to work on Saturdays for religious reasons as a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The justices declined to review…
Opinion/Editorial: Religious rights finally upheld for elderly couple
On Jan. 16, 1786, the General Assembly passed the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, written by Thomas Jefferson, which stated that “no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods,…
Federal appeals court now says Florida Latin cross can stay
A federal appeals court ruled Feb. 19, 2020, that this World War II-era cross can remain standing in Pensacola, Fla. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the 34- foot Latin cross does not violate the Establishment Clause of the Constitution, based on a similar ruling last year by…
Rights and privileges of college students
Photo courtesy of unsplash.com Students’ rights are a complex, contentious and highly relevant issue. However, despite the fact that these rights are vitally important to college students and the ways they may conduct their lives, many are unaware of how their attendance at a university may impact their freedoms and…
Federal appeals court now says Florida Latin cross can stay
A federal appeals court ruled Feb. 19, 2020, that this World War II-era cross can remain standing in Pensacola, Fla. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the 34- foot Latin cross does not violate the Establishment Clause of the Constitution, based on a similar ruling last year by…
Cross can stay at Florida public park, circuit court panel rules
The historic 34-foot cross stands in Bayview Park in Pensacola, Florida. A 34-foot tall cross can remain at a public park in Florida, according to a ruling from a three-judge panel that reversed an earlier decision from the same appeals court. The panel with the U.S. Court of Appeals for…
Religion can’t excuse discrimination. Bethel Christian Academy shouldn’t get state money.
Views expressed in opinion columns are the author’s own. Last week, a U.S. District Judge rightfully ruled against Christian private school Bethel Christian Academy, which claimed the state of Maryland violated its religious freedom after being excluded from a taxpayer-funded school voucher program. The state government pointed out Bethel failed…
Cross can stay in Pensacola park, appeals court rules
This cross, displayed for decades in Bayview Park in Pensacola, Fla., is the subject of a lawsuit arguing that it violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. The legal battle over whether the city of Pensacola can keep a large cross on display in a public park took a…
Annette J. Henry | Medical marijuana for prisoners? … Do the constitutional and/or legal rights for access to medicine and sacrament extend to persons who are incarcerated?
The prohibitionist treatment of the cannabis sativa plant, coupled with the outdated drug laws, continues to be an issue of deep social significance in the international space, the Caribbean and, by no lesser means, to the people of Jamaica who have long known cannabis as a miracle plant with medicinal…
Medical marijuana for prisoners? – … Do the constitutional and/or legal rights for access to medicine and sacrament extend to persons who are incarcerated?
The prohibitionist treatment of the cannabis sativa plant, coupled with the outdated drug laws, continues to be an issue of deep social significance in the international space, the Caribbean and, by no lesser means, to the people of Jamaica who have long known cannabis as a miracle plant with medicinal…