City Of Dearborn Apologizes for Arresting Christians

[Jroc]

CITY OF DEARBORN APOLOGIZES FOR ARRESTING CHRISTIANS AT 2010 ARAB FESTIVAL; SETTLEMENT REACHED IN LAWSUIT

Detroit, Michigan (May 6, 2012) — After more than two years of intense motion practice and discovery, the City of Dearborn has agreed to enter into a settlement that includes a public apology for arresting several Christian missionaries who were peacefully preaching to Muslims at the Dearborn Arab International Festival in 2010. The American Freedom Law Center (AFLC), a national nonprofit Judeo-Christian law firm, is representing Dr. Nabeel Qureshi, David Wood, and Paul Rezkalla, who were thrown in jail on June 18, 2010, and charged with “breach of the peace” for their free speech activity.

In September 2010, Robert Muise, AFLC Co-Founder and Senior Counsel, represented the Christians during a five-day criminal trial. At the end of the trial, the Christians were acquitted by a unanimous jury verdict. Following the acquittals, fellow AFLC Co-Founder and Senior Counsel David Yerushalmi and Muise filed a 100-page, civil rights lawsuit against the City, its mayor, John B. O’Reilly, its chief of police, Ronald Haddad, 17 City police officers, and two executives from the American Arab Chamber of Commerce on behalf Qureshi, Wood, and Rezkalla. The lawsuit was later amended to add the Arab Chamber as a defendant. The civil rights complaint alleged that the Christians’ constitutional rights were egregiously violated during the Arab festival.
Just this past week, the City agreed to enter into a settlement, which includes a public apology that will be posted on the City’s website for three years; the removal from the City’s website of a press release and letter from the mayor that contained derogatory comments about the Christians; and a payment to the Christians, the amount of which is confidential. The legal claims against the Arab Chamber defendants will proceed.
The City’s public apology states as follows:


On June 18, 2010, David Wood, Nabeel Qureshi (co-founders of Acts 17 Apologetics) and Paul Rezkalla were arrested by Dearborn police officers at the Dearborn Arab International Festival (“Arab Festival”), while they were engaging in a peaceful dialogue about their Christian faith with several festival attendees. Wood, Qureshi, and Rezkalla were subsequently charged with breach of peace, a misdemeanor offense.
The decision to arrest these individuals was based in part on information provided to the Dearborn police by Arab Festival attendees, workers, and volunteers. When all of the information—including the video captured by Wood, Qureshi, and Rezkalla—was presented to a Dearborn jury, the jury found that these individuals were not guilty of the criminal offense of breach of peace.
The City of Dearborn regrets and apologizes for the decisions to arrest and prosecute David Wood, Nabeel Qureshi, and Paul Rezkalla and the hardship caused to everyone involved.
Through this apology and its acceptance by David Wood, Nabeel Qureshi, and Paul Rezkalla, the parties seek to build a bridge and to confirm to the community that members of all faiths are welcome in Dearborn to peacefully share their views and to engage in religious discussions.

VICTORY! CITY OF DEARBORN APOLOGIZES FOR ARRESTING CHRISTIANS AT 2010 ARAB FESTIVAL; SETTLEMENT REACHED IN LAWSUIT « vineoflife.net

You can't trespass at a public event. The festival is on a blocked of public street, next year they'll be moving it to a park.

 

[TemplarKormac]

And people say Liberals are tolerant? AHHAHAHAHAHAH! OHO OHO OHO (gasps) AHAHAHAHAH!!!!!

(Clears throat) Ahem.. I apologize for that little outburst. I just can't resist myself when I see examples of Liberal tolerance!

(stifles a laugh, chuckles)

BAHAHAHAH!!!!



(exits thread)

 

[bodecea]

The Persecution of Christians in this Country is horrendous.

 

[JoeB131]

So tresspassing and annoying people is okay?

So when will you let me come into your Church and let me do my "Jesus was a Myth" presentation?

 

[TemplarKormac]

So tresspassing and annoying people is okay?

So when will you let me come into your Church and let me do my "Jesus was a Myth" presentation?

Uh, can you give me an example in this case where they were trespassing? Just one? How does handing out the Gospel of John or standing OUTSIDE of the festival constitute "trespassing"?

No man is turned away from the house of God.. well that's how it works in mine. Joe, stop being a freaking bigot. You know, you get your right to hate, I get my right to worship and proclaim the faith. The First Amendment used to mean something in this country, now people like you come up and try to strip it away from people because of your hatred of them.

Did you not recognize the inherent hypocrisy here? Arabs have a Muslim themed festival, nobody arrested. Christian missionaries quietly demonstrate outside, and are summarily arrested. So, why aren't you saying anything about the Muslims/Arabs, Joe?

Oh that's right, I can't hear you over the sound of how bigoted you are.

 

[blastoff]

Here in MI it's often referred to as Dearborn Dhabi.

 

[JoeB131]

So tresspassing and annoying people is okay?

So when will you let me come into your Church and let me do my "Jesus was a Myth" presentation?

Uh, can you give me an example in this case where they were trespassing? Just one? How does handing out the Gospel of John or standing OUTSIDE of the festival constitute "trespassing"?

No man is turned away from the house of God.. well that's how it works in mine. Joe, stop being a freaking bigot. You know, you get you right to hate, I get my right to worship and proclaim the faith. The First Amendment used to mean something in this country, now people like you come up and try to strip it away from people because of your hatred of them.

Did you not recognize the inherent hypocrisy here? Arabs have a Muslim themed festival, nobody arrested. Christian missionaries quietly demonstrate outside, and are summarily arrested. So, why aren't you saying anything about the Muslims/Arabs, Joe?

Oh that's right, I can't hear you over the sound of how bigoted you are.

By the logic of what you just posted, what Fred Phelps and his bunch of nutters are doing is just fine, too. They aren't "trespassing". They are on public property being assholes.

If I went outside your church and started handing out atheist literature, that would be pretty douchey behavior, and so is going outside an islamic festival and handing out christian propaganda.

Maybe arresting people was an overreaction. But the douchy behavior was the proximate cause here.

 

[JoeB131]

So tresspassing and annoying people is okay?

So when will you let me come into your Church and let me do my "Jesus was a Myth" presentation?

You can't trespass at a public event. The festival is on a blocked of public street, next year they'll be moving it to a park.

Oh, that makes it totally okay then.

Still sounds pretty douchy to me. I frankly can't see the reason for it. Did they really think they were going to get any converts that day, or were they just out to annoy people?

 

[Crackerjaxon]

So tresspassing and annoying people is okay?

So when will you let me come into your Church and let me do my "Jesus was a Myth" presentation?

You can do it in public all you want. You can stand on the street and do it all you want. You can do it on your blog all you want.

There are myriad ways for you to make a fool of yourself. I see you've taken advantage of one of them right here.

 

[TemplarKormac]

So tresspassing and annoying people is okay?

So when will you let me come into your Church and let me do my "Jesus was a Myth" presentation?

Uh, can you give me an example in this case where they were trespassing? Just one? How does handing out the Gospel of John or standing OUTSIDE of the festival constitute "trespassing"?

No man is turned away from the house of God.. well that's how it works in mine. Joe, stop being a freaking bigot. You know, you get you right to hate, I get my right to worship and proclaim the faith. The First Amendment used to mean something in this country, now people like you come up and try to strip it away from people because of your hatred of them.

Did you not recognize the inherent hypocrisy here? Arabs have a Muslim themed festival, nobody arrested. Christian missionaries quietly demonstrate outside, and are summarily arrested. So, why aren't you saying anything about the Muslims/Arabs, Joe?

Oh that's right, I can't hear you over the sound of how bigoted you are.

By the logic of what you just posted, what Fred Phelps and his bunch of nutters are doing is just fine, too. They aren't "trespassing". They are on public property being assholes.

If I went outside your church and started handing out atheist literature, that would be pretty douchey behavior, and so is going outside an islamic festival and handing out christian propaganda.

Maybe arresting people was an overreaction. But the douchy behavior was the proximate cause here.

How was it douchy? Stop with the prevarications, Joe. They weren't being unruly in any way. You just want to find something wrong with them so badly. Hey, if you start that at my church, heck we may invite you in! We aren't going to go all crusades on you or anything!

 

[Crackerjaxon]

So tresspassing and annoying people is okay?

So when will you let me come into your Church and let me do my "Jesus was a Myth" presentation?

Uh, can you give me an example in this case where they were trespassing? Just one? How does handing out the Gospel of John or standing OUTSIDE of the festival constitute "trespassing"?

No man is turned away from the house of God.. well that's how it works in mine. Joe, stop being a freaking bigot. You know, you get you right to hate, I get my right to worship and proclaim the faith. The First Amendment used to mean something in this country, now people like you come up and try to strip it away from people because of your hatred of them.

Did you not recognize the inherent hypocrisy here? Arabs have a Muslim themed festival, nobody arrested. Christian missionaries quietly demonstrate outside, and are summarily arrested. So, why aren't you saying anything about the Muslims/Arabs, Joe?

Oh that's right, I can't hear you over the sound of how bigoted you are.

By the logic of what you just posted, what Fred Phelps and his bunch of nutters are doing is just fine, too. They aren't "trespassing". They are on public property being assholes.

If I went outside your church and started handing out atheist literature, that would be pretty douchey behavior, and so is going outside an islamic festival and handing out christian propaganda.

Maybe arresting people was an overreaction. But the douchy behavior was the proximate cause here.

Douchey behavior is expected of atheists. Go stand in front of any church you want and engage in atheist douchebaggery, No one will be surprised.

Phelps and his crew are over the top, but they operate within the law. Even atheists douchebags are protected by the 1st Amendment.

Evidently, you believe that everyone but Christians should be protected by the 1st Amendment.

Typical atheist douchebaggery.

 

[Crackerjaxon]

So tresspassing and annoying people is okay?

So when will you let me come into your Church and let me do my "Jesus was a Myth" presentation?

You can't trespass at a public event. The festival is on a blocked of public street, next year they'll be moving it to a park.

Oh, that makes it totally okay then.

Still sounds pretty douchy to me. I frankly can't see the reason for it. Did they really think they were going to get any converts that day, or were they just out to annoy people?

How do you know they didn't get any converts?

 

[Sunni Man]

The Arab Festival is a just a family event with carnival rides for kids and plenty of food plus entertainment.

These harassing Christians are no different than the Westboro Church people who picket military funerals.

But since it's muslims, and not soldiers funerals, many here support the rabid protesters. ..

 

[Crackerjaxon]

The Arab Festival is a just a family event with carnival rides for kids and plenty of food plus entertainment.

These harassing Christians are no different than the Westboro Church people who picket military funerals.

But since it's muslims, and not soldiers funerals, many here support the rabid protesters. ..

They were harrassing no one. They have the right to practice their religion just like you do.

 

[Katzndogz]

They weren't rabid. They were just there. That's why they were not convicted.

 

[Sunni Man]

They were harrassing no one. They have the right to practice their religion just like you do.

Harassing people isn't what Jesus taught his followers to do. ..

 

[Katzndogz]

Being visible is harassing.

 

[bodecea]

Being visible is harassing.

They just stood there being visible?

 

[Katzndogz]

What were they convicted of?

 

[WillowTree]

So tresspassing and annoying people is okay?

So when will you let me come into your Church and let me do my "Jesus was a Myth" presentation?

It was when it was the OWS people doing it. I didn't hear you bitching about that. turdknocer