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CAR HITS CHURCH-FLORIDA
Car hits packed Florida church, injuring 21
FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) — Police in Fort Myers, Fla., say a car slammed into a packed church just as its Easter concert was about to begin, injuring 21 people as it barreled through the brick outer wall and several rows of pews.
Fort Myers Police Lt. Victor Medico says the Lexus sedan struck the Second Haitian Baptist Church at around 8 p.m. Sunday, when there were about 200 people inside. Investigators are looking into the crash even though they believe it was "an unfortunate traffic accident."
The News-Press reports that church members used car jacks to lift the vehicle off of people who were trapped underneath.
Mary Briggs of Lee Memorial Health System said 18 people were taken to hospitals, but none required surgery.
Sound:
243-a-07-(Stephanie Toussaint, witness to car crashing into church, in interview)-"to start church"-Stephanie Toussaint, who saw a car crash into the church, says it happened as an Easter concert was about to begin. COURTESY: WBBH-TV ((Mandatory on-air credit)) (21 Apr 2014)
<<CUT *243 (04/21/14)££ 00:07 "to start church"
244-a-07-(Patti Louis, witness to car crashing into church, in interview)-"dead and everything"-Patti Louis, who saw a car crash into the church, says it barreled through the wall into several rows of pews. COURTESY: WBBH-TV ((Mandatory on-air credit)) (21 Apr 2014)
<<CUT *244 (04/21/14)££ 00:07 "dead and everything"
052-a-05-(Nicolas Plancher, church member, in interview)-"going libbity bing"-Church member Nicolas Plancher says he was at Easter service when a car drove through the wall. COURTESY: WINK TV ((mandatory on-air credit)) (21 Apr 2014)
<<CUT *052 (04/21/14)££ 00:05 "going libbity bing"
053-a-12-(Lieutenant Victor Medico, Fort Myers Police Department, with reporters)-"were trapped underneath"-Fort Myers Police Lieutenant Victor Medico says there were about 200 people inside the church and that several of them had to be pulled from underneath the car. COURTESY: WINK TV ((mandatory on-air credit)) (21 Apr 2014)
<<CUT *053 (04/21/14)££ 00:12 "were trapped underneath"
GALVESTON CHURCH REOPENS
Hundreds on hand as Ike-damaged church reopens
GALVESTON, Texas (AP) — Hundreds of worshippers have attended Easter services at a restored Roman Catholic church in Galveston that had been closed since 2008's Hurricane Ike.
Services were held Sunday at the St. Mary Cathedral-Basilica, which suffered significant damage in the storm. The first Mass at the newly renovated church was celebrated by Cardinal Daniel DiNardo (duh-NAR'-doh), head of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston.
The Rev. E.J. Stein says everyone is grateful to those who helped restore the church, which was built in 1847. More than $4 million was spent on renovations including a new roof and reinforcement of the structure. Stein says the church will resume weekday Masses in May.
The church was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1968.
UNDER GOD-LAWSUIT
New Jersey school sued over 'under God' in pledge
FREEHOLD, N.J. (AP) — A family is suing a New Jersey school district, contending that the phrase "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance discriminates against atheist children.
The lawsuit against the Matawan-Aberdeen Regional School District was filed in state court last month and was announced Monday by the American Humanist Association. The group says the phrase, added in 1954, "marginalizes atheist and humanist kids as something less than ideal patriots."
The anonymous plaintiffs say the two words "under God" violate the New Jersey constitution.
But school district lawyer David Rubin says the district is merely following a state law that requires schools to have a daily recitation of the pledge. He says individual students do not have to participate.
The humanist group is awaiting a ruling from a court on a similar case in Massachusetts.
DAY OF REASON
Chafee declares May 1 'Day of Reason'
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Gov. Lincoln Chafee has signed a proclamation declaring a "Day of Reason" in Rhode Island.
The proclamation declares May 1 the Day of Reason. The Humanists of Rhode Island and the Secular Coalition for Rhode Island say they requested it.
The proclamation says the application of reason has "proven to offer hope for human survival upon Earth by cultivating intelligent, moral and ethical interaction among people."
The groups are planning events to coincide with the National Day of Reason. The events are being held in parallel with the National Day of Prayer, the same day. They say they're aiming to raise awareness about what they view as a "persistent threat" to separation of church and state.
The Providence Journal reports that Gov. Chafee also signed a proclamation declaring May 1 a Day of Prayer.
SCIENCE POLL
Poll: Religious adults less likely to accept some scientific concepts
WASHINGTON (AP) — Religious Americans are less likely than others to believe some things that most scientists consider facts, according to an Associated Press-GfK poll.
The survey asked people to rate their confidence in several statements about science and medicine.
Overall, about 4 in 10 say they are not too confident or outright disbelieve in man-caused global warming, that the Earth is 4.5 billion years old or that life on Earth evolved through natural selection, and more than half of those surveyed question the Big Bang theory.
The poll also found that confidence in evolution, the Big Bang, the age of the Earth and climate change decline sharply as faith in God rises. Likewise, those who regularly attend religious services or are evangelical Christians express much greater doubts about scientific concepts they see as contradicting their faith.
Sound:
230-v-33-(Steve Coleman, AP religion editor)--Religious Americans are less likely to believe some concepts that most scientists consider facts, according to an Associated Press-GfK poll. AP Religion Editor Steve Coleman reports. (21 Apr 2014)
<<CUT *230 (04/21/14)££ 00:33
130-c-14-(Sandy Kozel, AP correspondent)-"reflect settled facts"-AP correspondent Sandy Kozel reports the poll finds political and religious views are tied closely to perceptions of science. (21 Apr 2014)
<<CUT *130 (04/21/14)££ 00:14 "reflect settled facts"
129-c-17-(Sandy Kozel, AP correspondent)-"billion years ago"-AP correspondent Sandy Kozel reports a poll finds Americans pick and choose which scientific facts they want to believe. (21 Apr 2014)
<<CUT *129 (04/21/14)££ 00:17 "billion years ago"
128-v-32-(Sandy Kozel, AP correspondent)--The Big Bang is still a big question for most Americans. AP correspondent Sandy Kozel reports. (21 Apr 2014)
<<CUT *128 (04/21/14)££ 00:32
GAY SCOUT LEADER OUSTED
Boy Scouts ban Seattle church from hosting troop
SEATTLE (AP) — A Seattle church's Boy Scouts of America charter has been revoked because the church has allowed a gay adult to continue leading a troop.
A Boy Scouts of America attorney told Rainier Beach United Methodist Church last week that it could no longer hosts troops under the Boy Scouts name.
The church has stood by Geoff McGrath. His membership in the Scouts was revoked last month after Boy Scouts of America officials learned of his sexual orientation. The group does not allow openly gay adults to serve as leaders.
The Rev. Monica Corsaro said in a statement that her church is inclusive of all people, and has obtained legal counsel to evaluate its options.
McGrath said Monday he will continue to participate in the church's youth program even if it can't use the Boy Scouts name.
Sound:
248-c-09-(Phuong Le (fong LEE'), AP correspondent)-"gay adult leaders"-AP correspondent Phuong Le says a Methodist church in Seattle has run afoul of the Boy Scouts of America leadership policy. (21 Apr 2014)
<<CUT *248 (04/21/14)££ 00:09 "gay adult leaders"
250-c-08-(Phuong Le (fong LEE'), AP correspondent)-"lead troop meetings"-AP correspondent Phuong Le says the church whose troop is led by Geoff McGrath has lost its Boy Scouts of America charter. (21 Apr 2014)
<<CUT *250 (04/21/14)££ 00:08 "lead troop meetings"
249-c-07-(Phuong Le (fong LEE'), AP correspondent)-"the scouting program"-AP correspondent Phuong Le says troop leader Geoff McGrath's Boy Scout membership was revoked when he revealed that he was gay. (21 Apr 2014)
<<CUT *249 (04/21/14)££ 00:07 "the scouting program"
ANTI-SODOMY LAWS
12 states ban sodomy a decade after court ruling
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — A dozen states still have anti-sodomy laws on the books 10 years after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled they are unconstitutional.
One such state is Louisiana, where gay rights groups contend police have used anti-sodomy laws to target gay men. But state lawmakers sided with religious and conservative groups in refusing to repeal the law last week.
Sarah Warbelow is legal director for the gay rights advocacy organization Human Rights Campaign. She says that out of 14 states that had anti-sodomy laws, only Montana and Virginia have repealed theirs since the Supreme Court ruling.
Warbelow says that in addition to Louisiana, anti-sodomy laws remain on the books in Alabama, Florida, Idaho, Kansas, Michigan, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas and Utah.
SUPREME COURT-BORN IN JERUSALEM
Court to look at 'born in Jerusalem' passport case
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a passport dispute centering on whether Americans born in Jerusalem may list their place of birth as Israel.
The court said Monday it will review a lower court ruling that struck down a 2002 law that authorized identifying Jerusalem as part of Israel on U.S. passports. The lower court said the law impermissibly infringed on the power of U.S. presidents, who have refused to recognize any nation's sovereignty over Jerusalem since Israel's creation in 1948.
The challenge to the passport rule was brought by parents of an American boy named Menachem Zivotofsky, who was born in Jerusalem soon after the law was passed.
Zivotofksy is now 11, and his Washington lawyer, Nathan Lewin, said when he filed the Supreme Court appeal that he hoped the boy's passport could be changed to reflect Israel as his place of birth before his bar mitzvah. Jewish boys have their bar mitzvah at the age of 13.
The court will hear the case in the fall and should hand down a decision by June 2015. Zivotofsky will turn 13 four months later.
SYRIA
Ahead of vote, Syria's Assad visits seized village
BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian President Bashar Assad is promising to defend Christians — who make up about 10 percent of Syria's prewar population of 23 million — and protect churches that he says are part of the country's cultural heritage.
Assad marked Easter with a tour Sunday of an ancient Christian village recently recaptured by his forces, an important symbolic prize for his government ahead of coming presidential elections he appears poised to contest.
Syria's civil war has seen Islamic extremists and radical foreign fighters join the fight and target Christians and their houses of worship. Many of Syria's patchwork of minority Christian and Muslim faiths support Assad or have remained neutral, fearing for their fate should hard-line rebel groups seize power.
TEXTBOOK BILL-FLORIDA
Bill creates unfunded mandate, activist group says
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — A Muslim activist group says a bill that would require the state's school districts to review textbooks used in classrooms creates an unfunded mandate and opens the door to biased learning materials.
Ghazala Salam, with the Florida chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, says the bill unfairly burdens school boards with the approval of textbooks, which is now handled at the state level. School boards can currently select textbooks from a list drawn up by the Florida Department of Education or review the books at the district level.
The group contends the bill sponsored by state Sen. Alan Hays is based on an anti-Muslim bias. Hays introduced the measure after hearing complaints from constituents that a history book emphasized information about Islam and underrepresented Christianity.
NATIVE AMERICAN RELIGION-PRISON
Native American sues Indiana prison over religion
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — A Native American is asking a federal judge to order the state to allow him and others to exercise their religion in an Indiana prison.
Daniel Littlepage says in a class action lawsuit that Native American worship ceremonies were terminated at Indiana's Miami Correctional Facility in 2013 because there were no outside volunteers to lead them. However, the lawsuit claims that the commission tasked with recommending such volunteers hasn't met since 2007.
Littlepage's lawsuit says the prison is violating his constitutional religious rights.
Littlepage is represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana. It's seeking an injunction that would allow Native Americans to resume their religious ceremonies. A hearing on Littlepage's request is scheduled for Wednesday.
The Indiana attorney general's office had no immediate comment on the case.
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