A Southern California church has filed a federal lawsuit in the U.S. Central District of California against Gov. Newsom over his ban on singing and chanting during worship services.
Harvest Rock Church and Harvest International Ministries (HIM) alleges the ban criminalizes worship and violates the right to religious freedom under the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment.
Constitutional attorney Bilal A. Essayli finds the ban stunning.
“I find it interesting that the governor is explicitly limiting legitimate religious activities, which seems to be in clear prohibition of the First Amendment,” Essayli told the Southern California Record. “It is literally the first amendment. It’s not some token rights. This was a fundamental principle of our founding fathers that we would have the freedom to exercise our religions of choice. I have never seen the government intercede in the relationship between an individual and God.”
Attorneys for the church, based in Pasadena, requested a temporary restraining order (TRO) halting the ban’s enforcement but U.S. District Judge Otis Wright denied the request. The church has also requested a preliminary injunction and Gov. Newsom filed a brief in opposition on Aug. 3. Attached was an affidavit from Dr. James Watt, chief of the division of communicable diseases at the California Department of Public Health (CDPH).
“The risk of COVID-19 transmission is increased by activities engaged in by groups that increase the likelihood that respiratory droplets will be spread from one person to another person or persons, including speaking, chanting, shouting, and singing in close proximity to others and especially indoors,” wrote Dr. Watt in his brief.
However, the church alleges that state guidelines have not been equally applied upon protestors who also chant and shout during rallies.
“If you’re telling us that it's so dangerous for people to sing at church because this virus is so contagious and deadly, how is it not dangerous for people to be protesting in large crowds in public who are shouting and doing other activities that are just as dangerous as singing?” Essayli said. “This really highlights the hypocrisy and the lack of any scientific basis for the policy but we haven't been successful in getting judges to actually undertake this analysis, dig behind the governor's orders and look at whether there is a rational relationship between the order and the objective.”
Harvest Rock Church’s attorneys Nicolai Cocis and Daniel J. Schmid said in their July 17 complaint, “Plaintiffs’ church faces criminal penalties despite their complying with social distancing and personal hygiene protocols wholly absent at the mass protests Governor Newsom encouraged, applauded and blessed.”
Thankfully, however, enforcement of Gov. Newsom’s COVID-19 orders have been spotty at best, according to Essayli.
“We have seen a very mixed bag of enforcement when it comes to the governor's orders and it depends on what agencies you're dealing with,” he said. “A lot of local governments have taken a hands-off approach and are not actively enforcing the governor's orders, whether it's the mask order or other orders.”
A hearing on the plaintiff’s motion for a preliminary injunction is set for Aug. 12.
As previously reported, a similar lawsuit was filed by The Calvary Chapel of Ukiah, the Calvary Chapel Fort Brag and River of Life Church in the Eastern District of California.
A motion hearing for a preliminary injunction is set for Aug. 21 before Chief District Judge Kimberly J. Mueller.
“Practically, we haven't seen any judges, at least in California, rule against the governor and I speculate it’s because they're very concerned about a slippery slope and what a Pandora's box it may open,” Essayli said.