Photo: Ossama Mohamed Bahloul, imam of the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro, works to finish the building despite the court rulings. (NPR caption)
We won, and I suspect that when the judge issues a stop work order and they realize that they cannot occupy the building while it's going through the appeal process, the threats will start up again.
"The Court denied the Stay the County requested so the injunction against the Occupancy Permit stands and the Court will issue a Ruling on the Stop Work order soon."
NPR bemoaned bibles in the courtroom. Would those tools bemoan the qur'an? What transparent asshats.
Chancellor Robert Corlew has ordered the county to withhold an occupancy certificate until the case is resolved. The fix, he says, would be to have another planning commission meeting to approve the project. He says the one in 2010 didn’t get enough public notice.
“If that meeting were to occur, I think that would remove all of the appeals.”
Corlew suggests the county needs to go above and beyond an ad in a free newspaper when notifying the public of meetings of particular interest.
Mary Springer said:
“Are they going to get denied now? No, it’s already built. No, It’s not going to get denied. But they want to make a big issue of it and tie up more of our taxpayer money.”
Chancellor Corlew says the case has already proved costly for the government and will only balloon if the dispute reaches the state or even U.S. Supreme Court.
Bibles in Court
Opponents of the mosque carried Bibles into a hearing on the matter and at one point cheered from the gallery.
Darrel Whaley, a local pastor, says he expects the mosque will eventually be finished. But he also sees a point in challenging the project. He contends the Islamic faith is dangerous.“A lot of people in this county understand Islam who didn’t, and that’s been a big help. So when the mosque gets built, it’s going to be under strict scrutiny. And we’re allowed to do that.”
Related: The latest exclusive to Atlas: EXCLUSIVE: Murfreesboro Mega-Mosque proselytizing in public school curriculum
