Which Way, L.A.?
State vs. Church in Orange County Land Dispute
Cypress is an Orange County suburb, north of Long Beach between Anaheim and the 605 Freeway. It-s a quiet town, and the home of a mosque and 31 churches. The Cottonwood Christian Center's 4000 worshippers want to make it 32, and build at the intersection they own at Katella Avenue and Walker Street. But last week, by a vote of 4 to zero, the Cypress City Council voted to exercise its power of eminent domain-so the land can be used to build a new Costco that will generate city revenue from the sales tax. Both sides have invoked the Constitution and brought on their lawyers. We talk with a reporter for the LA Times, the General Counsel for the Becket Fund, the City Attorney for the City of Cypress, and Costco's Chief Legal Officer about the right to worship, the need for municipal planning, the embarrassment of national publicity, and the powers of Satan. Newsmaker: ACLU Files 5 Suits Against Airlines Continental, United, Northwest, and American Airlines are all facing lawsuits. The American Civil Liberties Union charges that passengers were removed from five different flights because of their skin color. In Los Angeles, the plaintiff is asking not for money, but for airline policies and training to ensure this will not happen to him or his relatives ever again. The Managing Attorney for the ACLU of Southern California describes the situation.
By Warren Olney • • 1 min readCypress is an Orange County suburb, north of Long Beach between Anaheim and the 605 Freeway. It-s a quiet town, and the home of a mosque and 31 churches. The Cottonwood Christian Center's 4000 worshippers want to make it 32, and build at the intersection they own at Katella Avenue and Walker Street. But last week, by a vote of 4 to zero, the Cypress City Council voted to exercise its power of eminent domain-so the land can be used to build a new Costco that will generate city revenue from the sales tax. Both sides have invoked the Constitution and brought on their lawyers. We talk with a reporter for the LA Times, the General Counsel for the Becket Fund, the City Attorney for the City of Cypress, and Costco's Chief Legal Officer about the right to worship, the need for municipal planning, the embarrassment of national publicity, and the powers of Satan.
ACLU Files 5 Suits Against Airlines
Continental, United, Northwest, and American Airlines are all facing lawsuits. The American Civil Liberties Union charges that passengers were removed from five different flights because of their skin color. In Los Angeles, the plaintiff is asking not for money, but for airline policies and training to ensure this will not happen to him or his relatives ever again. The Managing Attorney for the ACLU of Southern California describes the situation.
