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Phoenix church sues city over park feeding ban
A Phoenix church group called St. Herman's Table and member Lance Brace are suing the city over a new ordinance restricting food distribution and medical care in parks. FOX 10's Megan Spector reports.
PHOENIX - A Phoenix church group is suing the city of Phoenix over a new ordinance restricting food distribution and medical care to people in need at parks.
However, as of Thursday, a judge has granted the church group a temporary pass to ignore the city rules.
What they're saying:
"If there’s somebody in need, I want to help them," said Lance Brace.
The new city ordinance makes giving out free food or non-emergency medical care in public parks without a permit a Class 1 misdemeanor.
"There’s a lot of hungry people and there’s a lot of people who need a lot of things," Brace said.
The church group "St. Herman’s Table" meets at a Phoenix park every Thursday to pass out food and supplies to the homeless. However, under the new city ordinance, getting a permit to do this weekly is impossible.
"They have been going out every Thursday evening and without difficulty, without any complaints, without any citations from the city," said Steven McFarland, who is representing the church group. "There hasn’t been any problem until this ordinance was passed and that as of last Monday made it illegal for them to show up every week."
Dig deeper:
The city caps permits at two per park, per month. The church group is arguing it violates their constitutional religious rights.
"I think it’s very unfortunate that the city is potentially putting us in a position where I have to choose between living out my faith or following the law," Brace said.
Council members back the ordinance for public health, arguing the activities strain city resources, draw large crowds, and leave trash. McFarland countered the city's position.
He says, "It’s discriminating against citizens on the basis of who they are feeding. If you show up in this park to celebrate somebody’s graduation, or you have twenty 10-year-olds to celebrate a birthday, they make just as much noise. They have just as much litter. And the wear and tear on the picnic tables. But they don’t have to get a permit. If you are, however, feeding the homeless out of a religious sense of obligation and kindness, you need a permit."
A federal judge has granted the group a temporary restraining order, meaning for the next two weeks they have permission to continue feeding the homeless without the permit requirements while their lawsuit is further reviewed.
The city sent FOX 10 the following statement:
"We will comply with the Court’s very narrow temporary order, which applies only to St. Herman’s Table and Lance Brace, for two weeks. The City Council adopted this ordinance to ensure that all residents can enjoy their neighborhood parks, and it applies equally to anyone who wants to hold a feeding event at a park. It makes no distinction based on religion. The ordinance simply provides an effective tool to regulate and manage the growing competition in City parks between food distribution events and other, more traditional park uses, like children’s play, youth sports, adult recreation, and family outings. We encourage anyone who wants to provide food to people experiencing homelessness to participate in Healthy Giving. Residents can find opportunities to give back to trusted organizations at givesmartaz.org."
"For me, if I have to choose between the commands of God or the law of the city, that’s a very easy decision for me to make," Brace said.
What's next:
This temporary restraining order is just for this specific church group. The city ordinance still applies to any other group or individual.