Faith & Freedom Coalition Applauds the DOJ for Defending Unjustly Fined Church in VA

DULUTH, Ga. – Faith & Freedom Coalition, with over 2 million members and supporters of faith-based values, commends the Department of Justice for siding with Lighthouse Fellowship Church in Virginia. The church is suing Governor Northam after police threatened their pastor, Kevin Wilson, with jail time or a $2,500 fine for violating the state’s coronavirus lockdown restrictions by holding a 16-person church service on Palm Sunday. The 16 people in the service were upholding legal social-distancing guidelines in a sanctuary that can fit 225 people.

In a statement from the Department of Justice, Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband for the Civil Rights Division said, “The Commonwealth of Virginia has offered no good reason for refusing to trust congregants who promise to use care in worship in the same way it trusts accountants, lawyers, and other workers to do the same. The U.S. Department of Justice will continue to monitor any infringement of the Constitution and other civil liberties, and we will take additional appropriate action if and when necessary.”

“On behalf of the Faith & Freedom Coalition, I want to thank Attorney General William Barr and the Department of Justice for standing up for religious freedom and for defending Lighthouse Fellowship Church,” said Timothy Head, executive director of the Faith & Freedom Coalition. “Governor Northam has acted harshly against religious services and has treated them unfairly. It’s cases like these that have led Attorney General Barr to implement an initiative directing a review of state and local policies to ensure civil liberties are protected during the pandemic.”

To learn more about the Faith & Freedom Coalition and President Trump’s responses to COVID-19, visit https://www.ffcoalition.com/covid-19/.

About the Faith & Freedom Coalition

The Faith and Freedom Coalition is a national grassroots movement of over 2 million conservatives and people of faith in support of time-honored values, stronger families, and individual freedom. Learn more about Faith & Freedom at www.ffcoalition.com.