Kiryas Joel Dissidents Lose Appeal
Shmarya Rosenberg • FailedMessiah.com
A federal appeals court has ruled against Kiryas Joel's dissidents, the Times Herald-Record reports.
The ruling, which was handed down yesterday, rejected dissidents’ argument that Kiryas Joel should be dissolved because Kiryas Joel leaders discriminate against the dissidents and trample the Establishment Clause of the Constitution, which mandates separation of church and state.
The appellate court upheld a U.S. District Court ruling that many of the claims of persecution made by the dissidents had already been litigated in state court, and therefore they could not legally be litigated again.
The appellate court also reportedly agreed with the lower court’s ruling that the dissidents did not have standing to bring the other claims.