California pastors sue Gov. Gavin Newsom over coronavirus restrictions on gatherings
A group of Inland Empire pastors is suing California Gov. Gavin Newsom in federal court, alleging that his administration is “criminalizing the free exercise of religion” with stay-at-home directives that have prevented people from attending church services.
The Dhillon Law Group, which is led by conservative attorney Harmeet Dhillon, filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, on behalf of four plaintiffs, three of whom are pastors.
One of the plaintiffs is Dean Moffatt, a Riverside County pastor who was fined $1,000 for holding a Palm Sunday church service, according to the complaint filed.
The other plaintiffs include a San Bernardino County churchgoer, a San Bernardino County pastor and another Riverside County pastor.
Newsom on March 19 handed down an executive order asking Californians to stay home to slow the spread of the coronavirus outbreak. Some churches in the state have become hot spots for coronavirus infections, including one near Rancho Cordova where 71 congregants have been afflicted with the virus.
At a press conference last Friday, Newsom said he wasn’t opposed to people worshiping, provided that they did so in a safe, physically distant manner.
“Practice your faith, but do so in a way that allows you to keep yourself healthy,” Newsom said.
The lawsuit argues that Newsom and other state officials “in a gross abuse of their power, have seized the coronavirus pandemic to expand their authority by unprecedented lengths, depriving plaintiffs and all other residents of California of fundamental rights protected by the U.S. and California Constitutions, including freedom of religion, speech, and assembly, and due process and equal protection under the law,” according to the complaint. “It is this court’s duty to defend these constitutional principles, by safeguarding the many rights and liberties of Californians that defendants so brazenly violate.”
The pastors in the lawsuit also are suing California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, and officials for both Riverside and San Bernardino counties, including the county supervisors and sheriffs.
The Dhillon Law Group previously sent a letter to San Bernardino County, warning that it would file a lawsuit if the county didn’t rescind an order banning in-person religious services. The county later issued a clarifying statement that Easter services could continue, provided that congregations “make every effort to prevent contact between congregants.”
“If a Californian is able to go to Costco or the local marijuana shop or liquor store and buy goods in a responsible, socially distanced manner, then he or she must be allowed to practice their faith using the same precautions,” Dhillon said in a written statement.
Newsom’s office did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
A previous version of this story incorrectly identified a Sacramento County church where an outbreak had occurred. The church is outside of Rancho Cordova city limits.
This story was originally published April 13, 2020 at 5:37 PM.