Contra Costa County policy library room usage for ‘religious services’ reviewed, againhttp://www.alliancedefensefund.org/news/story.aspx?cid=4789 ALLIANCE DEFENSE FUND MEDIA ADVISORY
ADF attorney available to media after hearing Contra Costa County policy banning groups
WHO: ADF Legal Counsel Tim Chandler WHAT: Available for media interviews after hearing in Faith Center Church Evangelistic Ministries v. Glover WHEN: Friday, Jan. 9, immediately following hearing, which begins at 9 a.m. PST WHERE: U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, 450 Golden Gate Ave., 17th Floor, Courtroom 2, San Francisco SAN FRANCISCO — Alliance Defense Fund Legal Counsel Tim Chandler will be available for media interviews Friday after his oral arguments in Faith Center Church Evangelistic Ministries v. Glover. ADF attorneys are representing the Christian ministry in a lawsuit against Contra Costa County officials, contesting the constitutionality of a policy excluding groups from accessing public library meeting rooms for what the county considers “religious services.” “Christian groups shouldn’t be excluded and discriminated against for their beliefs,” said Chandler. “The Constitution simply doesn’t give government officials the authority to act as free speech police and draw the fine line between ‘religious speech’ and ‘religious worship.’” After agreeing to allow Dr. Hattie Hopkins, the leader of Faith Center Church Evangelistic Ministries, to hold meetings at the Antioch Branch Library on two dates in 2004, Contra Costa officials told Hopkins toward the end of the first meeting that she could no longer hold meetings there because the county’s policy states that “library meeting rooms shall not be used for religious purposes.” Glover appealed a district court ruling that granted the request of ADF attorneys to halt the library’s policy while the lawsuit moves forward. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit reversed the preliminary injunction ruling, and a number of pro-liberty organizations submitted briefs supporting the position of Faith Center when ADF attorneys appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court (www.telladf.org/news/story.aspx?cid=4205). After the high court denied ADF’s petition for review in October 2007, both sides filed motions for summary judgment in September 2008 asking the district court to issue a final ruling on the case. A fact sheet is available on the lawsuit at www.telladf.org/UserDocs/FaithCenterFactSheet.pdf. ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.
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