Mississippi mayor nixes ban on drive-in services after DOJ intervention

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A day after the Justice Department intervened on behalf of a local church in a lawsuit over a ban on drive-in services in Greenville, Miss., due to city COVID-19 social distancing restrictions, the mayor now says such religious gatherings are allowed.

“Today, given the definitive guidance from the governor, in the city of Greenville we will allow drive-in and parking lot services in the city – so long as families stay in their cars with windows up,” Greenville Mayor Errick Simmons said in a press conference Wednesday streamed over Facebook Live.

The Justice Department filed a statement of interest in support of the Temple Baptist Church on Tuesday, although Simmons, a Democrat, said the reversal came after a conversation with the state's Republican governor Wednesday.

DOJ INTERVENES IN MISSISSIPPI DRIVE-IN CHURCH CASE, SAYS CITY'S ACTIONS 'TARGET RELIGIOUS CONDUCT'

He said that during a call with mayors from around the state, Gov. Tate Reeves had told the local leaders that drive-in services “are safe” when congregants follow social distancing guidelines and remain in their separate cars with their windows up.

"The City of Greenville fined congregants $500 per person for attending these parking lot services – while permitting citizens to attend nearby drive-in restaurants, even with their windows open,” Attorney General Bill Barr said Tuesday, echoing concerns of critics of the ban who said it singled out religious institutions unfairly.

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The Temple Baptist Church, with Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), had sued in response to the fines. A similar lawsuit against the city was filed Wednesday by First Liberty Institute on behalf of the King James Baptist Church.

Jeremy Dys, an attorney at First Liberty Institute, thanked both Reeves and Simmons “for recognizing the importance of protecting religious liberty by clarifying that drive-in church services are allowed during this difficult time.”

MISSISSIPPI CHURCH SUES POLICE AFTER CONGREGANTS TICKETED DURING DRIVE-IN SERVICE

The lawsuits challenged an April 7 executive order that prohibited drive-in church services until the lifting of a statewide shelter-in-place order.

Gov. Reeves, whose shelter-in-place order did not place a specific ban on drive-in services, took notice of the attorney general’s intervention before his reported call with the mayors.

"Thank you to the Trump administration and Attorney General Bill Barr for this strong stand in support of religious liberty," Reeves tweeted Tuesday. "The government cannot shut down churches. Mississippi is not China. This is still America. We will help support this any way we can."

Mayor Simmons also announced Wednesday that up to 10 people, including pastors, musicians, media teams and congregants, could gather inside a church as long as they followed all of the coronavirus guidelines of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

But he reiterated his previous request that people avoid in-person gatherings.

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“Churches are still strongly encouraged to hold services via Facebook Live, Zoom, Free Conference Call and any and all other electronic, social media, streaming telephonic platforms available for the safety and protection of life,” he said.

The Justice Department’s intervention in the Mississippi case also comes after a federal judge, in a similar case, sided with a church in Kentucky.

On Fire Christian Church had sued mayor of Louisville, Ky., Greg Fischer, and the city after Fischer announced drive-in style religious gatherings were not allowed on Easter.

U.S. District Judge Justin Walker sided with the church, saying that the city is prohibited from “enforcing; attempting to enforce; threatening to enforce; or otherwise requiring compliance with any prohibition on drive-in church services at On Fire.”

Fox News' Jake Gibson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.