The state of California agreed to a settlement in which it will pay more than $2 million in legal fees to attorneys who represented churches that were handed down significant restrictions during the coronavirus pandemic, even as retail businesses experienced fewer regulations.
A federal judge approved the settlement after attorneys for a Pentecostal church in the San Diego area brought its lawsuit against the state to the U.S. Supreme Court three times and won.
As Fox News reported, the deal includes a permanent injunction following the High Court’s rulings that asserted houses of worship cannot have restrictions placed upon them that surpass those placed on retail businesses.
“If they’re gonna restrict Costco to 50%, then they can do the same thing to churches,” Attorney Paul Jonna of the Thomas More Society said. “But what they were doing before, as you may remember, is they were keeping those places open and they were shutting down churches — at least in California — completely.” Read more…
