Press Release
Tyler & Bursch, LLP / Advocates for Faith & Freedom
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, August 31, 2021
Contact: Christina Selter at 951-600-2733
media@tylerbursch.com
For Immediate Release 08/31/2021, Los Angeles, California – Local church, Calvary Chapel, has filed a demurrer to dismiss Santa Clara County’s First Amended Complaint which claims the church’s worship services are a public nuisance and seeks 2.8 million in fines.
Since the County filed their original complaint on October 27, 2020, the Supreme Court has held the County’s and State’s restrictions on indoor gatherings unconstitutional. After almost a year of litigation and numerous depositions, the County has not linked even one COVID-19 case to the church’s indoor gatherings. Yet, the County has the gall to claim the church is a public nuisance and press the church for millions of dollars in fines.
Calvary Chapel’s demurrer argues the County’s fines derive from unconstitutional public health orders and an unconstitutionally vague ordinance. It is a basic principle of due process [under the 14th Amendment] that an ordinance is void if its prohibitions are vague. Here, the Ordinance has defined "businesses" and "commercial activity" so broadly that literally no entity is beyond its reach—including a local church that does not receive profit but rather exists for the sole benefit of the public it serves. This unbecoming wordsmanship is clearly unconstitutional.
"No matter where you stand politically on the COVID-19 issue, I think all Americans can agree it's outrageous for Santa Clara County to seek $2.8 million dollars in fines against a church under the classification of a commercial entity,” said Tony Black, a California attorney representing Calvary Chapel. “This is especially true when, over the last year, the U.S. Supreme Court has repeatedly held it was unconstitutional for the government to prohibit churches from holding worship services."
Additionally, Calvary Chapel is asking the court to dismiss the public nuisance claim the County has raised in the midnight hour. The church is arguing that the County has not established a “connecting element” or a “causative link” between the church’s conduct and any harm to the public. “The Government can only provide this Court with unconvincing speculation and misconstrued facts,” added Tony Black.
For additional comments and interviews, please contact Christina Selter at 951-600-2733 or media@tylerbursch.com
About Tyler & Bursch, LLP (www.tylerbursch.com): With offices in Murrieta and Irvine CA, Tyler & Bursch’s attorneys have been litigating civil liberties cases for more than 25 years in federal and state court. Tyler & Bursch provides pro-bono legal support through the non-profit legal organization, Advocates for Faith & Freedom (www.faith-freedom.com).
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