Faith Baptist Church officials claim Waterford
Township violated their free exercise of religion
rights while responding to noise complaints.
Posted on 03/12/2008 7:30:33 AM PDT by Between the Lines
When it comes to music played during church worship services, what is too loud? The question has triggered lawsuits in Waterford Township.
In February, Timothy Carlson, a homeowner living across from Faith Baptist Church on Airport Road, filed a civil complaint against the church over loud band music generated last summer during praise and worship services.
On Monday, the church responded by filing its own lawsuit in federal court against Waterford officials, alleging they violated the church's and band members' rights to free exercise of religion, free speech and freedom of association.
The church - led by Pastor Jim Combs, who has a congregation of 5,000 members - also alleges the township's actions have hurt worship services.
The church's lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court, Eastern District, lists plaintiffs as Pastors Jim Combs and Martin Woody, Andrew Olafsson, Jeffrey Johnson and two minors, listed only by initials, K.H. and E.H.
Listed as defendants are Waterford Township, Supervisor Carl Solden, Prosecutor Walt Bedell, Police Chief Daniel McCaw and Deputy Chief Jeffrey James.
According to church attorneys, the lawsuit was prompted by the "series of police incursions into the church and threats by the township prosecutor to raid the church every time music was heard coming from it."
Police said they have been in the church, but they were just responding to residents' noise complaints.
"We started getting complaints from citizens in the area last August," said McCaw.
"(The band) was very loud, and all the doors were open."
Officers entered the church Sept. 26 and talked to musicians taking part in the service. They collected names and prepared a report, said McCaw. The young musicians were playing drums and guitars, he said. No charges were filed against the musicians, attorneys said.
Church officials argue having police come into the church is unnecessary.
"Uniformed police officers entering a church during religious services and young church members being threatened with prosecution is something that happens in communist China, not in America," said Richard Thompson, president and chief counsel of the Thomas More Law Center, the Ann Arbor-based national public interest law firm that filed the church's lawsuit.
"It is clear that Waterford Township authorities targeted Faith Baptist Church because of the type of religious music it uses in its services," said Thompson.
Not about religion
Timothy Carlson has lived across from Faith Baptist for several years, said his attorney Andrew Paluda of Paluda Smolek in Troy.
Carlson is married and "just wants to sit in his yard and have a barbecue," said Paluda.
Paluda said Carlson repeatedly requested that the church address the noise problem.
"When the situation wasn't remedied, he was forced to retain counsel to seek relief," Paluda said.
Paluda stressed the complaint has nothing to do with religion.
"They can conduct any religious service they want in the confines of their church. The problem is that the noise escaping from the church infringes on the neighbors' right to use and enjoy their own residences. They are in violation of township noise ordinances."
Paluda reported noise levels during services have been recorded above 70 decibels. A 70-decibel level is about the same noise level of busy traffic or a vacuum cleaner, according to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.
"Because they are a church doesn't give them immunity from the law," he said.
History of lawsuits
This isn't the first time Faith Baptist officials have locked horns with Waterford Township.
In 2004, Solden filed a lawsuit against his opponent, Republican Kris Dreyer, in that year's supervisor race, stating that Jim Combs' son, Joshua Combs, and his wife listed an invalid address on Dreyer's nominating petitions. Dreyer was eventually allowed to run, but he lost to Solden.
Joshua Combs also ran for the Waterford school board that same year but was charged with falsifying a school board election affidavit. Prosecutors stated he indicated he lived in Waterford but reported he was temporarily living in Clarkston while a new home was being built in Waterford. Combs later pleaded guilty and served probation.
Next steps
In the latest case, the church is asking the court to permanently prohibit police raids and for monetary damages.
"We want to stop the prosecutor and police from ever trespassing again and from conducting unlawful searches and seizures of youth who were just praising Jesus instead of hanging on street corners," said Brian Rooney, spokesman for the law center.
An evidentiary hearing in Carlson's case is set for April 2.
No court date has been set in the federal lawsuit.
Faith Baptist Church officials claim Waterford
Township violated their free exercise of religion
rights while responding to noise complaints.
I know a lot of Christians who detest Christian Rock music. I wonder if that was a mitigating factor.
The First Amendment is not supposed to be a bludgeon to use against one's neighbors.
Blessed are the meek.
I’ve been the worship leader in one church and played in the band (bass) in others. I also play in a classic rock band and a new country band. I don’t really care for the kind of music they are talking about here but different worship styles for different folk I guess.
But all that said, if you are playing loud music you should shut the doors, for crying out loud. Also, if it violates noise ordinances (e.g. after 10:00 pm) you should respect your neigbors piece. Isn’t that part of what Christianity is all about, after all - how we treat one another?
But sometimes this kind of thing is, attitudinally, the same as snake handling. It is not really worshiping God. It is culture.
>> living across from Faith Baptist Church on Airport Road <<
Natural this resident of Airport Road never expected loud sounds.
Yes, the church could have closed the doors. But raiding the church over a noise complaint?
>> Christianity survived for many years without needing to play amplified Christian rock on Wednesday nights. <<
No, they just rang out the loudest noise they could make (church bells) from the highest point of land they could find. But, then again, that was Sunday, not Wednesday night.
Incidentally, I don’t blame the man; I blame the way the town handled his complaints.
By the looks of the property I doubt you can hear the music from across the road that well unless they are outdoors.
“Do you hear that Ethel?”
“No dear”
“Come out in the driveway. I can hear it. It’s that demon rock and roll. It sounds like the Devil is beating his wife in there.”
“Yes dear”
“Why doesn’t Lester Roloff do something about it?”
“He’s been dead 30 years dear”
“Damn hippies”
That took place in a slightly different technological environment, when a clock of any description was crippingly expensive for the average citizen.
The bells were a welcome public service.
That's a blast from the past. Growing up in Corpus Christi my family attended the People's church where brother Roloff preached. It is probably one of the biggest reasons I now attend a contemporary worship style - casual dress church today.
He was one wierd dude. He was a pioneer in the Christian diet scene. He bragged that he would go a year without eating one piece of cake or drinking a glass of milk. I loved to hear him preach. He was unpredictable.
Ahem, excuse me but why can’t this Church be a good neighbor (love thy neighbor) and close the doors?
The complaints probably came from the whiteheads in the church who think that drums are of the devil.
He is one of the few preachers I have ever heard that could bring the King James to life.
It has become common practice in many churches today to have the doors open as the first song begins. For churches with multiple services it lets people know that the service is starting. The doors are usually closed shortly after the song begins. No way to know if that would be the case here.
At our church we have been known to open up the doors when using this song as the end of the service:
Did you feel the mountains tremble?
Did you hear the oceans roar?
When the people rose to sing of
Jesus Christ the risen one
Did you feel the people tremble?
Did you hear the singers roar?
When the lost began to sing of
Jesus Christ the risen one
And we can see that God you're moving
A mighty river through the nations
And young and old will turn to Jesus
Fling wide your heavenly gates
Prepare the way of the risen Lord
Open up the doors and let the music play
Let the streets resound with singing
Songs that bring Your hope
Songs that bring Your joy
Dancers who dance upon injustice
Did you feel the darkness tremble?
When all the saints join in one song
And all the streams flow as one river
To wash away our brokenness
And here we see that God you're moving
A time of Jubilee is coming
When young and old return to Jesus
Fling wide your heavenly gates
Prepare the way of the risen Lord
Written by Martin Smith ©1995 Curious? Music UK
I believe if I were dealing with the church in question, I would get my hands on an air raid siren and light it off a couple of Sundays and see what happened.
It’s good you have proper zoning for your church. Getting new churches built is sometimes really difficult due to opposition from potential neighbors. The normal bone of contention is traffic management and parking but if a church also means potential noise nuisance, then approval will become even more difficult. This church should seek to be a good neighbor and deal with the noise in a reasonable manner, for the good of all present and future churches.
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