Liberty Counsel

Strip Club Owner Hit with Attorney's Fee by Street Preacher

GREENSBURG, LA - Today, the 21st Judicial District Court awarded Liberty Counsel over $55,000 in attorney's fees and costs for the defense of Reverend Richard Sandberg for a lawsuit brought by a local strip club owner to silence his efforts to advance moral policy in St. Helena Parish.

CA Judge Refuses to Dismiss 14 Counts Against Sandra Merritt

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - Today Judge Christopher Hite denied Sandra 'Susan' Merritt's request to the San Francisco Superior Court to dismiss the 14 criminal charges which the Attorney General failed to refile within the time prescribed by law.

CA Surrogacy Law Supersedes Best Interest of Children

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Liberty Counsel filed an Amicus Brief today for M.C. v C.M.,asking the U.S. Supreme Court to accept the case challenging the California gestational surrogacy law that provides that intent of contracting parties supersedes the best interest of the children. Liberty Counsel represents the American College of Pediatricians, Family Research Council, Concerned Women for America and the Center for Family and Human Rights (C-FAM) and in support of the biological mother, M.C., who is represented by pro-life attorney Harold Cassidy.

Mat Staver Responds to "Hate Labels"

ORLANDO, FL -- Mat Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty, responds to the recent "hate label" from the Southern Poverty Law Center and calls for prayer and healing in a country divided.

State Department's Recycled Report "Whitewashes" PA Violence

WASHINGTON, D.C.--The State Department recently released the "Country Reports on Terrorism 2016," its annual assessment of global terrorism for the year, in which the report contains nearly identical language in defense of the Palestinian Authority (PA) for the 10th consecutive year. Instead of providing careful assessments of the PA's recent incitement to violence, state officials have "recycled" parts of its old reports that "whitewash" and overlook the PA's agenda for violence.

Sandra Merritt Seeks Dismissal of Charges

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - Sandra 'Susan' Merritt filed a Motion to Dismiss late yesterday asking the San Francisco Superior Court to dismiss the politically-motivated criminal complaints brought against her by the State of California because the Attorney General failed to timely file an amended complaint by the 10-day deadline regarding the dismissed Counts 1-14.

Service Members Grasp for "Transgender" Straws

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The National Center for Lesbian Rights and GLBTQ Legal Advocates and Defenders filed Jane Doe 1-5 v. Trump today in U.S. District Court on behalf of five service members who challenge President Trump's ban on so-called transgender people serving in the U.S. military. The defendants are listed as President Donald Trump, Defense Secretary James Mattis and other military leaders.

Court Asked to Hear Forced Abortion Speech Case

Washington, D.C.- Liberty Counsel is filing a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of three California faith-based, crisis pregnancy centers that are forced to advertise an offer of "immediate free or low-cost ...abortion" to their clients according to state law. This law forces Liberty Counsel's clients to speak a message that is profoundly at odds with their religious beliefs and directly contradicts what they actually want to say.

Bathroom Policy Sent Back to Lower Court

RICHMOND, VA - Today the Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals canceled oral arguments and sent back the case involving Gavin Grimm, a girl who wants to "identify" as a boy and use restrooms for boys. The case is G.G. v. Gloucester County School Board. The lower court is likely to dismiss the case because Grimm has graduated.

Tar Heel State Enacts Anti-BDS Legislation

RALEIGH, NC -- Gov. Roy Cooper has signed House Bill 161, known as "Divestment from Companies that Boycott Israel," which prohibits North Carolina from investing in or contracting with companies that boycott the state of Israel.

Brownback Nominated as Religious Liberty Ambassador

WASHINGTON, D.C. - President Donald Trump will nominate Gov. Samuel Dale Brownback of Kansas to be Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, Department of State.

DOJ - Title VII Does Not Include LGBT

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) filed an amicus brief in Zarda v. Altitude Express yesterday at the U.S. Federal Court of Appeals, which contends that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 bans gender discrimination, but does not include sexual orientation or gender identity, in the workplace.

Trump Says No "Transgenders" in the Military

WASHINGTON, D.C -- President Donald J. Trump announced today that the U.S. government will not allow so-called transgender people "to serve in any capacity in the U.S. military." President Trump's announcement came just weeks after Defense Secretary James Mattis announced that he will defer implementation of the transgender policy until January 1, 2018. The Obama-era policy would have allowed incoming service members identifying as "transgender" to enlist if they have been "stable" in their gender identity for 18 months.

Computer Security Company "Unblocks" Liberty Counsel

ORLANDO, FL - Norton Security Software, the anti-virus software company owned by Symantec that blocked users from the Liberty Counsel website stating it contains "hate" content, has now backed down. Norton acted in response to Liberty Counsel's letter demanding an immediate review and reversal of the "hate" classification which blocked users from the website (www.LC.org).

Jewish Legal Right to the Land Celebrates 95 Years

JERUSALEM, ISRAEL - Today is the 95th anniversary of the "Mandate for Palestine" (Mandate), issued by the League of Nations, which granted Jews the legal right to establish citizenship in what was then called "Palestine."

NJ Bill Enforces LGBT Agenda in Public Schools

TRENTON, NJ -- A bill that directs the New Jersey Commissioner of Education to review and modify public school guidelines to accommodate and promote the rights of "transgender" students, in accordance with current State or federal laws and regulations, has passed the Senate and the Assembly and goes to the Governor for consideration. Liberty Counsel sent a letter to Governor Chris Christie encouraging him to veto the bill.

Palestinian Muslims Rebel Against Temple Mount Security

JERUSALEM, ISRAEL - Following a deadly attack last Friday in which two Israel police officers were murdered and a third was seriously wounded, Israel temporarily closed the Temple Mount because they found that weapons had been smuggled into the Al-Aqsa Mosque. The Temple Mount, where the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock are located, was reopened Sunday with metal detectors installed. The Waqf, which Israel has allowed to control the Temple Mount, urged Muslims to refuse to go through the metal detectors and has called for protests and rage against Israel. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has now asked the White House to pressure Israel to remove the metal detectors.

Kim Davis and Rowan County Not Liable for Attorney's Fees

ASHLAND, KY - Today, U.S. District Judge David Bunning ruled that neither Kim Davis nor Rowan County are liable for attorney's fees over the marriage license issue that began in 2015. Judge Bunning did overrule the Magistrate's Findings and Recommendations that concluded the ACLU was not entitled to any attorney's fees because the plaintiffs were not the prevailing party. Bunning found that the temporary preliminary injunction entitled the plaintiffs to attorney's fees and went on to rule that the Commonwealth of Kentucky would be liable to pay the fees and costs, not Kim Davis or Rowan County.

Indiana Schools Discriminate Against Christian Club

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - Liberty Counsel is presenting argument in federal court today to require an Indiana school district to grant Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF) equal access to school facilities for the ministry's Good News Clubs. The case, Child Evangelism Fellowship of Indiana, Inc. v. Indiana Metropolitan School District of Pike Township, seeks to secure the same access and benefits for the Good News Clubs that non-religious groups currently enjoy.

So-called Conservative Legislators Cave to LGBT Agenda

WASHINGTON, D.C -- The House of Representatives voted 209 to 214 yesterday to defeat the amendment would have put an end to the use of military funding for "sex change" surgeries. There are 24 Republicans who voted on the side of the LGBT lobby to defeat the amendment.