Washington, D.C. Newsroom, May 14, 2020 / 14:00 pm
A protestant church in California is suing the state for ordering churches to remain closed while some businesses can reopen during the coronavirus pandemic.
South Bay United Pentecostal Church in Chula Vista, California filed the lawsuit on May 11 through the Thomas More Society, alleging that the state's plan of allowing certain businesses-including shopping malls and restaurants-to reopen before churches is unconstitutional.
"We feel it is totally unacceptable. It's relegating the churches to a second-class status," attorney Charles LiMandri told CNA on Wednesday.
Churches, he said, "enjoy special status" under the Free Exercise clause of the First Amendment, and "if anything" should be allowed to open before other organizations, provided that they follow public health guidelines for social distancing and hygiene.