Court says Indianapolis officials discriminated against churches under zoning code
Thursday, November 01, 2007

CHICAGO — The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit Tuesday reversed a district court ruling that denied an Indianapolis church’s request to use its rented building while its lawsuit against the city moves forward in court.  The 7th Circuit ruling sends the case back to district court.  City officials had threatened the church, saying that the church’s “religious use” of the property in a commercial district is not allowed.

“Churches should not be relegated to second-class status by city zoning officials,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Jeff Shafer.  “The city of Indianapolis singled out churches, requiring them to jump through hoops while giving similar nonreligious groups a free pass, which is simply unlawful.”

Toby Digrugilliers is the pastor of the Indianapolis church, where members met regularly at a leased.  But on Feb. 6, 2006, the church received a letter from the city saying that the church’s “religious use” of its property violated the city’s zoning codes.

City officials told the church it would need to obtain special permission to use the building for “religious purposes” or face a lawsuit; fines of up to $2,500 for each “violation”; and court costs.  Conversely, the city does not require nonreligious groups to obtain special permission to use leased buildings for operationally similar purposes.

“Pastor Digrugilliers and his congregation have the same right to lease a building in Indianapolis as nonreligious groups,” said Shafer, who served along with lead counsel and ADF-allied attorney David Langdon of Cincinnati.

The 7th Circuit order in Digrugilliers v. Consolidated City of Indianapolis can be read at www.telladf.org/UserDocs/DigrugilliersRuling.pdf.