A federal appeals court has reinstated a Jewish group's lawsuit accusing the Litchfield Historic District Commission of religious discrimination when it rejected plans for a synagogue in 2007.
A three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. District Court of Appeals in New York City ruled Friday that federal Judge Janet C. Hall in New Haven was wrong to dismiss the lawsuit by Chabad Lubavitch of Northwest Connecticut.
The panel said Hall erred by ruling that part of a federal law barring government interference in religious exercise didn't apply to the case.
The Historic District Commission decided Chabad Lubavitch's proposed 17,000-square-foot addition to an 1870s Victorian house was too large for the local historic district.
The commission's lawyer said he's confident Chabad Lubavitch's case will again be dismissed in U.S. District Court.
Appeals Court Reinstates Litchfield Synagogue Suit
Copyright AP - Associated Press
