Tag Archives: State: Illinois

GoPride.com: HB 5710, the Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act, provides that all laws of Illinois applicable to marriage apply equally to marriages of same-sex and different-sex couples.

Catholic Culture: I am especially scandalized by some “Catholic” politicians who willingly collaborate with efforts to restrict the civil liberty of the faith tradition from which they were originally sprung.

ABC News: A parishioner at the Disciple Fellowship Christian Church in East St. Louis, Ill., claims the spirit moved another worshiper so much during service that she caused others to tumble over backwards into her, causing injuries. Now she’s suing the church for damages.

News-Gazette.com: On Tuesday, the Illinois Supreme Court officially announced that it will start allowing cameras and recorders in state courts on an experimental basis with the aim of eventually pulling Illinois for good out of the group of 14 states that ban extensive media access at trials.

Chicagotribune.com: There were 41,859 abortions reported in 2010, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.

LifeNews.com: The abortion business in Rockford, Illinois that has been closed down permanently after recently reopening following an agreement with the state after violations it engaged in that caused its closing temporarily late last year.

Huffington Post: The Windy City Times reports that state representatives Greg Harris, Deb Mell, Kelly Cassidy, Ann Williams, Sara Feigenholtz and state senator Heather Steans have begun meeting with area LGBT and progressive groups to talk strategy for a bill that could be introduced as early as 2013.

One News Now: ADF attorney Bryan Beauman says about the owners of the bed and breakfast, “They’re willing to host weddings for marriages, but they decline to host any civil union ceremonies for both same-sex or opposite-sex couples. But we just believe this discrimination charge is baseless.”

ChicagoTribune.com: The Illinois Department of Public Health has approved a settlement that will allow a Rockford abortion clinic to reopen with a $9,750 fine.

The Freedom from Religion Foundation has issued a press release indicating that they sent a letter of complaint to Alsip, Illinois regarding a cross on top of the water tower.

Christian Examiner: “No business owner may be forced to violate his sincerely held religious beliefs merely because someone demands it,” said Steve Amjad, an attorney for the Alliance Defense Fund. . . . [more] “TimberCreek does not host civil union ceremonies for same-sex or opposite-sex couples, so the discrimination charge is baseless,” said ADF Senior Counsel Bryan Beauman. “TimberCreek has done nothing wrong, and their right to freely exercise their faith should not be threatened.”

ADF Attorney Jordan Lorence appeared on the Hugh Hewitt Show to discuss the Bronx Household of Faith and this: TimberCreek Bed and Breakfast accused of violating Human Rights Act for hosting weddings, not ‘civil unions’ | MP3 audio 5:33 mins

TimberCreek Bed and Breakfast accused of violating Human Rights Act for hosting weddings, not ‘civil unions’

Western Courier: Macomb’s City Council quickly introduced, discussed and unanimously passed Ordinance No. 11-36, a set of licensing regulations for “sexually oriented business activities.”

Christian Newswire: Today, the Illinois Supreme Court agreed to decide whether the Parental Notice of Abortion Act of 1995 violates the Illinois State Constitution of 1970. The high Court is expected to grapple with the question of whether, and to what extent, the Illinois Constitution includes protection for abortion rights.

NCRegister.com: Bishop Braxton has concluded that it’s time for U.S. Church leaders to reassess their dependence on government funds: “While many Catholics still advocate for government-funded vouchers to cover tuition at parochial schools, I am wondering if this even remains an option, when government funds comes with strings attached.”

Religion Clause: The Chicago Tribune reported yesterday that the Catholic dioceses of Joliet, Springfield and Belleville, Illinois have dropped their lawsuits against the state of Illinois in which they were seeking to retain state funding for foster care services without placing children with same-sex couples who had entered civil unions.

Northwest Herald: Just to be clear, no speakeasies, dance halls or more-than-massage parlors have voiced interest in calling Johnsburg home. Despite this lack of interest, Johnsburg’s Village Board has taken the opportunity to freshen up its adult entertainment ordinance . . .

The Americano: Illinois’ six Catholic bishops have deplored Catholic governor Pat Quinn’s role as the presenter of a “Pro-Choice Leadership Award” at an abortion advocacy group’s upcoming ceremony.

Windy City Times: A Timber Creek receptionist referred Windy City Times to The Alliance Defense Fund ( ADF ), a self-described “Christian legal alliance defending religious liberty, sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.” A 2005 Southern Poverty Law Center report listed ADF as one the top 12 most influential anti-gay groups in the country. ADF did not respond to a request to comment in time for publication.

How Appealing provides more information on the suite and links to news reports.

The Washington Post: An Illinois Supreme justice’s successful bid to keep his seat last year was the nation’s costliest retention election in a quarter century, legal-reform groups said Thursday in a report raising worries that increased money going into once-ignored races could undermine the judicial system.

Christian Post: A watchdog group dedicated to countering the agenda of homosexual activists said that a brick-throwing incident over the weekend at an Illinois Christian school is not simply an act of vandalism, but an act of domestic terrorism allegedly committed by a gay rights group.

State Senator Kyle McCarter (R-Lebanon) introduced a bill to amend the Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act to give faith-based agencies such as Catholic Charities the right to decline an adoption or a foster family home application if it violates the group’s religious beliefs.

The university’s top-tier PPO insurance plan is available to same-sex partners in a civil union, but not to heterosexual couples in the same type of legal relationship. Male-female partners are eligible only for the university’s HMO plan — unless they marry, in which case they can pick either plan.

MSNBC.com: The Chicago Tribune and WGN-TV, which obtained information about union pension benefits during a joint investigation, said at least eight union officials in Chicago were eligible for what were described as inflated city pensions on top of union pensions for the same period of employment.

Chicagotribune.com: The DuPage County Board today voted unanimously to approve changes to its zoning laws that will restrict the operation of new houses of worship and other places of assembly in unincorporated residential neighborhoods.

Religion Clause: In Marcavage v. City of Chicago, (9th Cir., Oct. 4, 2011), a Christian outreach group, Repent America, sued claiming that their religion, free speech and equal protection rights were violated during the 2006 Gay Games in Chicago when police in three instances ordered the group to change the location of their activities.

Chicago Sun-Times: Chicago is altering the route, size and starting time of its annual Gay Pride Parade to curb public drinking and accommodate crowds that topped 800,000 last year.

NCRegister.com: The Catholic Conference of Illinois has created a new Defense of Marriage department in response to the state’s passage of a civil-unions law.

National Law Journal on Law.com: The University of Illinois announced Wednesday that its law school reported inaccurate data to the American Bar Association on the academic credentials of its incoming students for the past three years, in addition to publishing inflated figures on its Web site this fall.

Chicago Tribune: The Alliance Defense Fund, a conservative Christian legal group, is representing one of the proprietors. Alliance Defense Fund attorney Jason Craddock told Huppke: I believe strongly that liberty of conscience, particularly religious liberty of conscience, is what our nation was built on and is something that goes deep to our souls. Increasingly it’s being pitted against the asserted rights of homosexuals. Now it’s going beyond just asking for tolerance. Now we’re getting into a situation where government is telling people of faith, “You can’t live out your faith if it happens to disagree with this particular group.”

Chicago Tribune: Illinois attorney Jason Craddock, a member of the Alliance Defense Fund, a national Christian legal organization that opposes abortion and same-sex marriage, also is representing Timber Creek. Craddock said cases such as this one involving the Wathens are critical for people of faith who believe their First Amendment freedom of religion is inviolable. [Jason is an allied attorney.]

LifeNews.com: The state of Illinois now requires abortion centers to join legitimate medical facilities in reporting cases of statutory rape to authorities in order for young girls to be protected. That’s something Planned Parenthood opposed.

Big Government: Illinois taxpayers are given the option to donate money to charity each year when they file their state tax returns.
Now, America’s most indebted state is raiding those funds to pay for wasteful spending that the Democratic governor and legislature refuse to cut.

Religion Clause: Michael v. Letchinger, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 86685 (ND IL, Aug. 5, 2011), involves zoning and tax disputes between George and Susan Michael and the village of Lake Bluff, Illinois. The Michael’s converted a portion of their expensive lake front home into what they claimed was an Armenian Orthodox Church, because Susan’s health made it difficult for her to travel to an existing church in Chicago. They transferred ownership to a new religious corporation they created.

LifeSiteNews.com: On Monday, Sangamon County Judge John Schmidt agreed to let the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois (ACLU) join the state’s battle against a lawsuit filed by four Catholic Charities agencies. Catholic Charities in Joliet, Peoria, Springfield, and Belleville filed the lawsuit against the state this summer, asking the court to declare that their policy of not recruiting unmarried couples, including same-sex couples, for foster care was within the law.

Chicago Tribune: The American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois got the go-ahead Monday to intervene in a lawsuit and join the state’s battle against Catholic Charities’ policy of turning away prospective parents who are in civil unions.

PRNewswire-USNewswire/ –: Catholic Charities policy of providing state-funded adoption and foster care services in a fashion that excludes same sex couples does significant harm to children in the custody of the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and discriminates against same-sex couples who desire to act as foster or adoptive parents. These arguments are the focal point of a filing by the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois, which moved late Friday (July 29, 2011) to intervene in a case brought by four Catholic Charities agencies (from Joliet, Springfield, Peoria and Belleville. | ACLU Filings

Courthouse News Service: The Belleville Diocese has joined the legal fight against a state law that takes away foster-care contracts from Catholic organizations that refuse to allow same-sex couples to become foster parents.

Chicago Sun-Times: For 18 years, the city of Chicago has been trying to shut down what’s now known as VIP’s A Gentlemen’s Club, whose politically connected owner, Perry Mandera, boasts that he runs “Chicago’s only full liquor & topless bar.”

An Illinois judge has blocked the state’s attempt to end its contracts with Catholic Charities after they refused an order to participate in same-sex adoptions and foster care placements. The move would have affected nearly 2,000 foster children.

Michelle Boorstein at The Washington Post: A conflict that roiled Washington’s social service world last year is detonating in Illinois, with the state reportedly severing major ties with Catholic Charities over the issue of same-sex marriage.

Bellinghamherald.com: The state of Illinois has declined to renew its foster care and adoption contracts with Catholic Charities across Illinois, possibly ending a historic public and private partnership initiated by the Roman Catholic Church a half-century ago and potentially severing the relationship between 2,500 foster children and their caseworkers.

LifeSiteNews.com: The City of Chicago dismissed its case Wednesday against a pro-lifer accused of violating a buffer ordinance guarding an abortion clinic, making him the latest of several activists arrested under the city’s buffer zone rules to have the charges dropped.

The New American: As reported by CNN, Emanuel “showed his support for the recently passed New York same-sex marriage law, telling CNN’s Wolf Blitzer … he would support similar legislation in Illinois.” Obama’s friend and political ally told Blitzer that he thought same-sex marriage is a “significant issue,” and he hoped Illinois would move in the same direction as the Empire State.

The Illinois Appellate Court has sent a never-enforced law requiring a girl’s guardians to be notified before she has an abortion back to the circuit court for trial.

LifeNews.com: The Chicago Tribune newspaper has released the details of a new investigative report revealing the number of abortions in the state has been massively underreported. Those numbers include six women who have died from botched abortions and 4,000 who were injured.

Religion Clause: : According to a report in today’s Chicagoist, two additional Catholic dioceses have followed the lead of Rockford Catholic Charities.

Religion Clause: A group of Baptist proselytizers have won the right to distribute pamphlets and speak with attendees on public streets around a Catholic Church where the Church annually holds a festival.

AP: Hundreds of couples around Illinois lined up early for the chance to get civil union licenses, including five couples in line in southwestern Illinois’ St. Clair County when the clerk’s office opened at 8:30 a.m.

The Illinois House of Representatives on Monday passed a gambling expansion bill that would bring a casino to Chicago.

Catholic Culture: Foster-care workers for Catholic agencies in Illinois have been informed that they will be laid off because of the new policy, which takes effect on June 1.

One News Now: A pro-marriage rally is set to take place Friday, May 27, at the famous “Loop” in downtown Chicago, where the Illinois Defense of Marriage Initiative, the statewide pro-marriage campaign will be introduced.

LifeNews: Geron has announced that the second patient has been injected with embryonic stem cell derivatives. This spinal cord injury patient was injected Saturday at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

MyFoxChicago.com: A class action lawsuit was filed Tuesday claiming that the state of Illinois refuses to change the gender on birth certificates of transsexual people unless they’ve undergone genital surgery. Lauren Grey, Victor Williams and Nicholas Guarino . . .

Chicago Tribune: Catholic charities are warning that they may halt adoption services if Illinois law requires them to place children with gay couples.

WIFR.com: The permit for a controversial ultra-sound van to park outside Rockford’s abortion clinic has been extended for seven weeks.

Newsmax: One in 7 counties in Illinois has more voters on the electoral rolls than the number of adult residents the U.S. Census tallied, a new study has found.

KWQC.com: The measure needed 60 votes to pass, but it got only 57 votes Wednesday before the sponsor halted the action. Fifty-one people voted no.

Chicago Tribune: “A measure to ensure faith-based groups could turn away committed same-sex couples who want to adopt children or provide foster homes failed in the Illinois Senate today.”

Christian Newswire: Liberty Temple Full Gospel Church of Bolingbrook a predominantly African American congregation is presenting an emergency motion before Federal Judge Harry D. Leinenweber set for April 12th in a lawsuit against the Village of Bolingbrook, asserting that the Village is discriminating against them in their effort to establish a permanent location for their congregation.

Chicago Tribune: “To encourage healthful eating, Chicago school doesn’t allow kids to bring lunches or certain snacks from home — and some parents, and many students, aren’t fans of the policy.”

Chicago Tribune: Republicans pointedly questioned whether Terry Cosgrove, the president and CEO of Personal PAC, could be fair in a role as a member of the state’s Human Rights Commission.

Chicago Tribune: “Roman Catholic leaders are pushing a bill saying Illinois women must be offered a chance to view an ultrasound picture of the fetus before undergoing an abortion.”

ADF attorney Casey Mattox at the Speak Up Movement Blog: In a major victory for the rights of conscience of medical professionals (and others), yesterday an Illinois Circuit Court struck down an Illinois regulation requiring pharmacists to sacrifice their sincere religious and moral objections and dispense “emergency contraceptives” like Plan B (“the morning after pill”) – and now Ella (the “week after pill”) if they have them in stock.

LifeNews: The American Center for Law and Justice today secured a sweeping victory for pro-life pharmacy owners in Illinois after a legal battle lasting six years. A state court in Illinois issued a decision striking down a state law that compels pharmacy owners to dispense Plan B and other forms of emergency contraception, even if doing so violates their religious or moral beliefs.

Religion Clause Blog: “In Christian Assembly Rios De Agua Viva v. City of Burbank, (IL App., March 31, 2011), an Illinois appellate court refused to grant a congregation a preliminary injunction to permit it to operate a church on property it has contracted to purchase.”

LifeNews: Abortion activists protested a weekend event honoring pro-life advocate Joe Schiedler of the Pro-Life Action League and the protests involved more than just holding signs or chanting, they included violence.

The court held that the rule violates the Illinois Right of Conscience Act, the Illinois Religious Freedom Restoration Act, and the First Amendment (facially and as applied).

Government officials in Illinois are reconsidering the Catholic Church’s involvement in adoptions after gay activists complained that the Church refuses to give up children to homosexual couples who have obtained a “civil union” under the new civil union law.

Religion Clause Blog: The complaint (full text) in Westminster Presbyterian Church v. City of Peoria, Illinois, (IL Cir. Ct., filed March 21, 2011), seeks a declaratory judgment that the fellowship meetings are sufficient to qualify Westminster House for the religious use exemption.

LifeSite News carries this roundup and report on the various states.

Chicago Sun Times: By a 13-0 vote, before a standing-room-only room of angry abortion-rights supporters clad in “Women are not livestock” T-shirts and buttons emblazoned with a cow, the panel advanced legislation putting new financial burdens on abortion clinics.

LifeNews: The bill inspired by the pro-life group Americans United for Life would expand the definition of who is a “mandatory reporter” of suspected sexual abuse to include everyone inside an abortion clinic – not just the abortion practitioner and nurse.