A California state judge on Thursday ordered Calvary Chapel Church, San Jose, in Santa Clara County to pay $1.2 million in fines for violating COVID-19 restrictions on masking, social distancing, and gatherings.
And one reason the county knew the church ran afoul of those rules was that its employees tracked the congregation by their phones.
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The church rejected the rules, put in place in 2020, asserting that they violated religious freedom protections guaranteed by the First Amendment.
Santa Clara County was the first in the state to declare a local public health emergency because of the virus, and was reportedly the site of the first U.S. COVID death.
Other counties soon followed, and Newsom used those rules as a springboard to launch some of the most stifling COVID restrictions in the nation, which remained in place for more than two years, long after other states had relaxed prohibitions on masking, gatherings and social distancing.
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On Thursday, Superior Court Judge Evette Pennypacker directed Calvary Chapel San Jose to pay the seven-figure fine because it dared to obey a power higher than county officials or Newsom.
“It should appear clear to all — regardless of religious affiliation — that wearing a mask while worshiping one’s god (sic) and communing with other congregants is a simple, unobtrusive, giving way to protect others while still exercising your right to religious freedom,” Pennypacker wrote in her ruling, according to CBS News.
“Unfortunately, Defendants repeatedly refused to model, much less, enforce this gesture. Instead, they repeatedly flouted their refusal to comply with the Public Health Orders and urged others to do so ‘who cares what the cost,’ including death.”
According to the Daily Wire, Mariah Gondeiro, the church’s lawyer, said Calvary Chapel, a non-denominational evangelical church, will appeal.
“We look forward to establishing more precedent on appeal that will have far greater implications for the future,” she said.
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The outlet also noted a comment by Senior Pastor Mike McClure from January 2021 to explain why the church defied the rules imposed by the county and Newsom.
“I think about our government’s infringement on our liberties. We were played. This whole thing, it’s a lie. I mean, not that it’s not a disease. But they’re using it to take control and to stop you and I from worshiping God,” McClure said.
Churches were among many California establishments that Newsom ordered closed in July 2020.
In contrast to the lockdown mentality Newsom expressed, Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis exempted churches from a stay-at-home order he signed in April 2020. DeSantis declared church attendance was allowable as “essential activities.”
Calvary Chapel’s battle against Santa Clara County began four months later, when it began racking up fines for violating public health directives.
The Daily Wire noted that county officials monitored cell phone usage of congregants at the church, including using “geofencing” to learn how many people attended various church services.
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“It is unconscionable how much time and money this county has spent surveilling and targeting this church when they should be focused on rebuilding the community,” Gondeiro said.
Court documents showed that Santa Clara County also dispatched observers to or around the church 44 times between August 2020 to January 2021.
In response to the ruling, Jay Bhattacharya, a medical professor at Stanford and an adviser to DeSantis, called it “outrageous.”
“Throughout the pandemic, California state courts have flouted the 1st amendment right to freedom of worship, & ignored evidence-based medicine,” he tweeted.
“This punitive ruling is outrageous, which the church will certainly appeal. May a wiser judge be found.”
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