Three Christians who were arrested for attending a church service during COVID-19 have received a $300,000 settlement from their small town in Idaho.
During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, three individuals from Moscow, Idaho were arrested for violating the city’s health protocols while attending a religious service conducted by their church. Gabriel Rench, Sean Bohnet, and Rachel Bohnet received national attention after video footage showed the three being arrested in the middle of an outdoor “psalm sing.” The viral video shows police officers ripping a hymn book out of one of their hands, handcuffing them, and arresting them at the service.
The reasoning for the arrests was that these three individuals repeatedly violated the city’s COVID-19 health ordinance. However, this ordinance included exemptions for religious activity. Sean and Rachel Bohnet also argued that their arrest had violated their First and Fourth Amendment rights.
Earlier this year, U.S. District Court Judge Morrison C. England, Jr. dismissed Moscow’s case against the three arrested individuals. The judge stated that these arrests should have never occurred in the first place, and questioned why public officials ignored the religious exemptions to the city’s COVID-19 health ordinance.
“[The] plaintiffs should never have been arrested in the first place, and the constitutionality of what the City thought [its] code said is irrelevant.”
“Somehow, every single City official involved overlooked the exclusionary language [of constitutionally protected behavior] in the Ordinance.”
U.S. District Court Judge Morrison C. England, Jr.
Now, the city of Moscow has announced that to avoid a protracted litigation proceeding, it will be issuing a $300,000 settlement to the arrested individuals. In a press release, the city stated that this settlement will provide “closure of a matter related to the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic and the City’s efforts to protect the public during an exceptionally trying time.”
The aftermath of COVID-19 has resulted in several instances of citizens filing lawsuits against public officials for violating their constitutional rights. However, not all plaintiffs are successful in fighting for their rights. Last April, A Superior Court Judge in California ordered a San Jose church to pay a $1.2 million fine for repeatedly defying COVID-19 lockdown regulations.
