Dearbornistan update: City officials sued for violating missionaries' civil rights

City officials in Dearborn, Michigan (a.k.a. Dearbornistan) are being called to account for their discriminatory actions against a group of Christian missionaries. Via The Detroit News:

Dearborn— The city, mayor, police chief and others were sued in federal court today, accused of violating the Civil Rights of Christian missionaries arrested at an Arab festival last summer.

The 96-page lawsuit, filed by Thomas More Law Center, an Ann Arbor-based Christian advocacy group, names the officials, 17 police officers and two executives of the American Arab Chamber of Commerce.

The lawsuit alleges Mayor John B. O'Reilly Jr., Police Chief Ronald Haddad and others conspired to deprive the missionaries of their Constitutional rights when they were charged with disturbing the peace at the Arab International Festival in June. The charges drew widespread attention because of the religious and free-speech issues raised by the case.

The law center filed the lawsuit on behalf of a Christian organization called Acts 17 Apologetics. The organization's founders include Nabeel Qureshi of Virginia and David Wood of New York, both of whom were charged alongside Negeen Mayel of California and Paul Rezkalla of New York.

A fifth member, Joshua Hogg also is named as a plaintiff in the lawsuit filed today in U.S. District Court in Detroit.

Acts 17 Apologetics wants a judge to declare the missionaries' Constitutional rights were violated and an injunction blocking the defendants from enforcing unconstitutional policies.

The group also wants compensatory and punitive damages against some defendants "for their reckless, wanton, intentional, and outrageous conduct, which was done with an evil motive and a callous indifference to the fundamental constitutional rights" of the Acts 17 members.

Last summer, Qureshi said he was looking to discuss Christianity with those who wanted to talk religion at the festival. But their activities were allegedly creating a disturbance at the festival. One festival volunteer had complained that he felt threatened by the Christian group and Assistant City Attorney William DeBiasi said the missionaries were spotted arguing with a crowd of festivalgoers.