Justice Department backs church in speech case

The Justice Department is supporting a church in a case against a California library that bars use of its rooms for religious purposes.

The friend-of-the-court brief [pdf file] said the policy by Contra Costa County is unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination.

"The county library's decision to treat religious speakers differently than everyone else is a blatant violation of the Constitution," said Elizabeth Murray, an attorney of the Alliance Defense Fund, which filed the lawsuit. "The Department of Justice's brief demonstrates how blatant that violation really is."

As WorldNetDaily reported in 2004, library officials told members of Sacramento-based Faith Center Church Evangelistic Ministries, who previously had used public meeting space at the Antioch Branch Library, they no longer could do so because of a policy stating "library meeting rooms shall not be used for religious purposes"

The current policy, last revised in December 2004 by county officials, opens library meeting rooms to the public but prohibits the use of meeting rooms for "religious services."

"It's unbelievable that, after the Supreme Court has consistently demanded that the government give equal access to speakers, a library would exclude Christians from a public forum," Murray said.

She said the support of the Department of Justice brings the church and other religious speakers "one step closer to having the freedom to exercise their constitutional rights."

WND reported last month an Ohio library dropped a policy that barred a public interest group from holding a forum on traditional marriage without also inviting someone to argue for "same-sex marriage."

The agreement by the Newton Falls Library Board of Trustees settled a lawsuit filed by Florida-based Liberty Counsel, which applied to the library to hold a meeting last spring that would include prayer and Scripture reading.

The library denied Liberty Counsel's application, citing a policy that said, "If a program deals with a controversial subject, then all sides of the issue must be presented."

Previous stories:

Library forced to drop limit on 'controversial' speech

Library policy: No religious people allowed

Library's anti-religion policy challenged

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