Lawsuit challenges Texas town's refusal to allow prayer service
By The Associated Press
08.20.02
TYLER, Texas — A lawsuit was filed yesterday against the town of Van, alleging that the eastern Texas city acted unconstitutionally when it refused a request to use its facilities for a prayer meeting.
The suit, filed in federal court in Tyler by the Virginia-based American Center for Law and Justice, names the city, Mayor E.L. Raulston and the aldermen in the Van Zandt County town of about 1,000 people.
"This is the first I've heard about it, so I don't have any comment about it at this time," Raulston said yesterday.
The city permitted Charles and Michelle Moore to use the Van Community Center in February for an event that attracted from 80 to 100 people and included worship songs, praying and a religious message, according to the suit. But when the Moores attempted to reserve the facility again for a prayer meeting, the suit contends city officials repeatedly rejected their request.
The Moores received a letter from the mayor stating that the center "is not available for any type of religious service meetings" according to the suit. The Moores were unsuccessful in their attempt to persuade the mayor and aldermen to reconsider the ban, and it remains, in place, the lawsuit says.
The complaint contends that the city's policy permits other events at the center, including the Kiwanis Club, Super Bowl parties and family reunions.
"The law is very clear: if a city permits its facilities to be used for a wide variety of purposes, it cannot legally reject a request to permit religious meetings from taking place. That's discrimination and a violation of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution," said Stuart J. Roth, senior counsel of the ACLJ, which was founded by religious broadcaster Pat Robertson.
Van is about 70 miles southeast of Dallas.