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Hat happens when you file a lawsuit? You open up yourself and your relevant friends to discovery. Joel McDurmon, who opposes the city's non-discrimination ordinance, explains: City Attorney David Feldman cited a training video showing one of the subpoenaed pastors explain the rules for signature gathering at a church presentation, pointing out that such “political speech” is fair game and might support the city's case for dismissing certain signatures.īroad Subpoena Requests Aren't Unusual. It's not unusual for attorneys to request large amounts of information of plaintiffs and their associates in the discovery process, even if they expect those requests to be limited. The Subpoenas Are Meant To Gather Information About Improper Church Behavior. The goal of the subpoenas is to gather information to support the city's case that HERO opponents behaved inappropriately when gathering signatures to repeal HERO. This is especially true in situations where sermons were recorded and distributed for public use. Sermons Are Not Immune To Being Subpoenaed. As The Washington Post's Eugene Volokh explained, precedent suggests that information typically protected by the First Amendment can still be subpoenaed if it's relevant to a legal investigation. But the headlines make it sound like a surprise attack by leftists advancing their agenda on unsuspecting Christians.” As one conservative commentator noted: “This is basic court procedure. The lawsuit claims that the City Attorney “wrongly determined that they had not gathered enough valid signatures” to qualify for a vote to repeal HERO. The Subpoenas Are In Response To A Lawsuit Filed By HERO's Opponents. The subpoenas are part of the discovery phase of a lawsuit filed by HERO's opponents after they unsuccessfully tried to gather signatures to repeal the ordinance. Fox News has covered the story in similarly misleading segments on Fox & Friends, Hannity, and The Kelly File:īut the facts of the case - and normal legal procedure - don't support right-wing claims of religious persecution: Starnes' apoplectic report triggered a wave of conservative misinformation about the subpoenas, with commentators accusing the city government of engaging in unconstitutional bullying and anti-religious harassment. We cannot allow ministers to be intimidated by government thugs. We must rise up and reject this despicable strong-arm attack on religious liberty. Now is the time for pastors and people of faith to take a stand.
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Sadly, that day arrived sooner than even I expected. I warned that under the guise of “tolerance and diversity” elected officials would attempt to deconstruct religious liberty. I predicted that the government would one day try to silence American pastors. On October 13, the anti-gay legal group Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) filed a motion to quash the subpoenas, calling them “overbroad” and “unduly burdensome.” The motion was reported by Fox News' Todd Starnes, who accused the city of Houston of trying to “silence American pastors” and “deconstruct religious liberty”: The subpoenas included a request for “all speeches, presentations, or sermons related to HERO, the Petition, Mayor Annise Parker, homosexuality, or gender identity.” But their claims that religious liberty should keep the pastors' public addresses secret ignores the fact that subpoenas of parties relevant to a lawsuit are a typical part of the legal discovery process.Ĭonservative media reacted with outrage to reports that the city of Houston had subpoenaed five local pastors requesting a variety of documents related to their involvement in the legal battle over the city's recently passed Equal Rights Ordinance (HERO), which prohibits discrimination against LGBT residents. Conservative media outlets, led by Fox News, are attacking the city of Houston for subpoenaing a number of local pastors who were part of the right-wing opposition to the city's LGBT non-discrimination ordinance that is suing the city now that the anti-discrimination law is in effect.