Court Cases

A British court rejected an appeal Friday from two Christian hotel owners who were sued after turning away a gay couple from their establishment because of their beliefs regarding pre-marital sex.

Peter and Hazelmary Bull from Cornwall, England, were ordered in Jan. 2011 to pay nearly $6,000 in damages to Steven Preddy and Martyn Hall after the gay couple was denied a stay at the Bull's Chymorvah Private Hotel.

The Bulls said they were not discriminating against Preddy and Hall's sexual orientation, but told the court they have a longstanding policy of rejecting all unmarried couples. The hotel owners told the appellate court they believe sex outside of marriage is amoral and that renting a room with one bed to an unmarried couple would be "promoting a sin." more >>

A federal appeals court in Chicago will review a lawsuit decision against a Wisconsin school district that held high school graduation ceremonies at a local church.

Elmbrook School District was sued for using the auditorium at nearby Elmbrook Church for graduation ceremonies for its two high schools. The case will be going to the full Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals for review.

"Students at Brookfield Central and Brookfield East High Schools respectively chose to schedule their graduation ceremonies offsite at the Elmbrook Church Auditorium due to lack of space," said Melinda Mueller, communications manager for Elmbrook Schools, to The Christian Post on Thursday. more >>

Lawsuits over the Obama administration's ruling requiring employers to pay for contraception, abortifacients and sterilization in their health coverage, without a broad religious exemption, have already begun. Based upon previous Supreme Court rulings, it is unclear how the courts will rule in these cases, a legal expert told The Christian Post.

Ambassador Douglas Kmiec, professor of constitutional law at Pepperdine University School of Law, does not agree with the president's decision, but his analysis of Supreme Court rulings suggests that it is uncertain how courts will decide these cases.

"I would have to tell [President Obama], that my honest answer about the law is that I think it is unclear as to what is required here," Kmiec said, because of the Supreme Court's ruling in Employment Division v. Smith (1990). more >>

A Michigan appeals court heard arguments Thursday on a case questioning whether a member of the clergy could testify in court about what he learned through a confession.

Current state law says members of the clergy violate priest-penitent privilege if they disclose in court what they learn through confessions.

Pastor John Vaprezsan is the clergy member at the center of the case. Vaprezsan testified last March against Samuel Bragg, who is accused of raping a 9-year-old girl, in a preliminary examination. According to Vaprezsan, Bragg and his mother came to Metro Baptist Church late at night in 2009, and the then 17-year-old confessed that when he was 15, he raped the 9-year-old girl, reported the Detroit Free Press. more >>

A federal appeals court in Atlanta maintained an earlier ruling that the rights of a former counselor at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were not violated when she was fired for refusing to advise an employee in a same-sex relationship.

On Tuesday, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Northern District of Georgia dismissed Marcia Walden's lawsuit against the CDC, two of its employees, and the Computer Sciences Corporation, affirming that summary judgment be granted to the defendants.

The panel agreed with a district court that Walden failed to establish a cause for religious discrimination and that her religious and free exercise rights were not substantially burdened when she was removed from her counseling position at the CDC. more >>

Renowned Pastor Tim Keller is speaking out for the first time against New York City's ban on church use of public school buildings.

"Grieved" that more than 60 churches will be forced out of public schools this month, Keller called the city's ban "unwise" and is hoping for a reversal.

"It is my conviction that those churches housed in schools are invaluable assets to the neighborhoods that they serve," the senior pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church said in a statement Tuesday. "Churches have long been seen as positive additions to communities. Family stability, resources for those in need, and compassion for the marginalized are all positive influences that neighborhood churches provide." more >>