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An Ohio pastor is fighting back after city officials filed criminal charges against him for allowing homeless people to sleep in his church. Pastor Chris Avell filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Bryan, Mayor Carrie Schlade, Bryan Police Department Captain Jamie Mendez, Bryan's Planning and Zoning Administrator Andrew J. Waterson, and Bryan Fire Chief Doug Pool.
The lawsuit says that Avell's church, Dad's Place, has been housing and feeding homeless people for five years. Last March, he decided to keep the church building open 24/7 so they could better serve people who needed his church's help.
In November, city officials learned that Dad's Place was letting people sleep there, in violation of zoning laws, and sent him a cease-and-desist letter. He was given ten days to comply, or he would face legal penalties that could result in a $500 fine and up to six months in jail.
Avell contacted city officials to see what he could do to continue letting homeless people stay in his church. He spoke with Waterson, who told him the church could seek a zoning variance or request a conditional use permit. However, Waterson told him the city was unlikely to grant either to the church.
Avell ultimately refused to kick the people out of his church because it was "directly contrary to its religious obligation."
In response to his refusal, the city began a "campaign to harass, intimidate, and shut down Dad's Place," the lawsuit claims.
The city sent inspectors to the church, who found 18 fire code violations. In a letter to the police chief, Fire Chief Pool recommended filing criminal charges against Avell for ignoring the city's zoning laws.
In December, the city followed through and filed 18 criminal charges against Avell. He has pleaded not guilty and is fighting the charges while trying to reach a deal with the city to continue housing homeless people in his church.
Avell's lawsuit accuses city officials of violating his First Amendment rights, the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment, and the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, which bars the government from placing land use regulations on religious institutions that create "a substantial burden" on their religious practices.
"Instead of prosecuting a pastor in an effort to drive his congregation from her sight, Mayor Schlade should be supporting a church trying to care for the marginalized in her community (and in the dead of winter). The Constitution and the law demand nothing less," Jeremy Dys, senior counsel for First Liberty, said in a statement.
The city has defended its actions, saying they are trying to protect the people staying at the church.
"These violations of the fire code noted by the Bryan Fire Chief create a clear and immediate danger to occupants of Dad's Place, whether transient residents or merely visitors to the facility," Bryan City Attorney Marc Fishel told NBC News. "There are also apartments on the second floor of this building unrelated to Dad's Place."