Church Goes Back to Court Over County’s Contempt
Reaching Hearts International is taking a Maryland county back to court in a continuing effort to build a new church. The church sued Prince George’s County, Maryland, after officials refused to approve water and sewage plans for its new property, which is the first step in building.
Attorney Ward Coe, who filed suit against the county and won in federal court, says the case was affirmed by the Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals directing them to process the next application without delay and without discrimination. “So we submitted an application and they turned it down and they took a year to do it,” he states. “We think they violated the injunction, so we’re back in court.”
The county contends the construction would affect the capacity of a nearby reservoir and threaten water quality. “That’s what they contended in the first case — and that reason was found to be a pretext by the jury and the court,” Coe explains. “In fact, they were opposed to having a church there.”
The attorney adds that county officials actually made a statement to the press that they opposed the church because it would not produce tax revenue.
Coe is asking the court to declare the county in contempt of court. The county already faces a judgment of $3.7 million.
(Source: OneNewsNow)
