First Posted: Jun 03, 2021 02:04 AM EDT
Photo : Mario Tama/Getty Images
California has agreed to pay more than $2 million in legal fees in a settlement with churches that questioned the state s COVID closure orders as a violation of religious freedom.
Religious Freedom Challenged in California
Aside from the monetary settlement, California also agreed not to impose stricter coronavirus restrictions on church gatherings compared to retail establishments.
According to U.S. News, lawyers for a San Diego-area Pentecostal church took their challenge regarding pandemic closure against the state to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The $2 million deal was approved Tuesday, June 1, by a federal judge after the lawyers of the religious group delivered the challenge against the state to the Supreme Court three times and won.
The state of California has agreed not to impose greater coronavirus restrictions on church gatherings than it does on retail establishments in a pair of settlements that provide more than $2 million in fees to lawyers who challenged the rules as a violation of religious freedom.
51.4% of eligible Californians are fully vaccinated.
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Permanent pandemic changes?
Restaurant patrons sit in a parklet along Valencia Street in San Francisco on July 25, 2020. Photo by Anne Wernikoff, CalMatters
Hard-hit restaurants and bars may not exactly come out of the pandemic smelling like roses but many will likely be able to continue serving alcohol to-go and expanding outdoor dining, CalMatters’ Miranda Green reports. State lawmakers are currently considering two bills that would permanently allow restaurants to sell to-go alcoholic beverages and another that would permanently allow cities to restrict traffic, creating “slow streets” that could encourage more outdoor dining. Several large cities, including Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose and San Francisco, have already expanded or are considering expanding their outdoor dining programs.
Fr. Trevor Burfitt preaches on the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity May 30 at Our Lady of the Angels Church in Arcadia, Calif. Father Burfitt won his lawsuit challenging California’s restrictions on in-person worship during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo: YouTube / Our Lady of the Angels)
The state of California will never again be able to target Our Lady of the Angels Church with a ban on Holy Mass due to COVID-19 under a permanent injunction in a priest’s lawsuit against California Gov. Gavin C. Newsom.
Fr. Trevor Burfitt of the Society of St. Pius X, and the Thomas More Society sued Newsom in September 2020, challenging the state’s ban on indoor worship as a violation of constitutionally protected freedom of religion. California Superior Court Judge Gregory Pulskamp issued a temporary injunction against California’s COVID restrictions on Dec. 10, 2020. A permanent injunction signed by Judge Pulskamp on May 27 bars the state from ever imposing discriminatory restrictions
Two More Churches Prevail in Religious Liberty Cases Against California s Governor Newsom
On 6/3/21 at 6:19 PM EDT
The legal fees related to religious liberty cases are racking up for the state of California and Governor Gavin Newsom.
This week, settlements in two cases involving discriminatory restrictions on churches in California imposed during the coronavirus pandemic resulted in permanent injunctions prohibiting such actions again. Those settlements also mean that the state of California will pay the prevailing parties attorneys fees, which amount to over $2 million.
On Tuesday, attorneys with the Thomas More Society secured the settlements in both major cases:
South Bay United Pentecostal Church, et al. v. Newsom, et al. and