MASSACHUSETTS
Concord Monitor
By PHILIP MARCELO
Associated Press
Thursday, July 23, 2015
Parishioners occupying a long-closed Catholic church south of Boston had their day before the state appeals court Wednesday as they sought to overturn a judge’s ruling that ordered them to end their nearly 11-year, round-the-clock protest vigil.
A three-judge appeals panel heard brief arguments from both sides, as dozens of parishioners and their supporters packed the courtroom. The panel is expected to issue a written decision at a later date.
In their court brief, the Friends of St. Frances X. Cabrini Church in Scituate, Mass., argued that a state superior court judge wrongly prevented them from presenting arguments referencing church or canon law, denied them the right to a jury trial and abused his judicial discretion, among other things.
The group wants the lower court decision reversed and the case ordered for a new trial.
“This is an ecclesiastical dispute,” lawyer Mary Elizabeth Carmody said Wednesday. “We believe this case was wrongfully decided.”
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