Allegation: Church seeks zoning variance so it can operate out of Baltimore County, Md. house (situated on 1.2 acres of land). Planning officials don’t object. Yikes! The neighbors object and are super racist about it. The county denies the variance. Fourth Circuit: Given the irregularities in the county’s decision-making process, it is at least possible officials were swayed by the neighbors’ animus. The case should not have been dismissed. And the church’s First and 14th Amendment claims deserve strict scrutiny.
