United States v. Bernards Township (D. N.J.)

On November 22, 2016, the United States filed a complaint in United States v. Bernards Township (D. N.J.), alleging that Bernards Township and its Planning Board violated the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 (RLUIPA) when the Planning Board denied site plan approval to allow the Islamic  Society of Basking Ridge (“ISBR”) to build a mosque where places of worship were permitted to locate. The complaint alleges that Bernards Township’s denial of approval for the mosque discriminated against the ISBR based on its religion and the religion of its members, applied standards and procedures on the ISBR that it had not applied to other religious and non-religious assemblies in the past, and, imposed a substantial burden on the ISBR’s religious exercise.  The complaint also alleges that the township violated RLUIPA by amending its zoning ordinance in a manner that imposes unreasonable limitations on religious assemblies. 

press release (11/22/16)