A Calvary Chapel church that defied shelter-in-place orders during the COVID-19 pandemic is asking the California Supreme Court to overturn a $1.2 million fine imposed for holding worship services during the lockdowns.
In its petition filed by Advocates for Faith & Freedom, Calvary Chapel San Jose and its senior pastor, Mike McClure, urged the state’s high court to resolve what attorneys say are critical constitutional questions involving religious liberty, due process and protection from excessive government punishment.
Led by Public Health Director Dr. Sara Cody, Santa Clara County became the first county in the country to issue a shelter-in-place order in March 2020, where churches and other organizations were ordered to shut down and residents were ordered to stay in their homes except for essential activities such as buying food or seeking medical treatment.
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The petition alleges that while Santa Clara County permitted secular exemptions — from construction sites to cigar lounges to nail salons — officials singled out religious gatherings for punishment, in direct violation of the Free Exercise Clause.
“This case is about far more than a fine, it is about the condition of religious liberty in California,” said attorney Robert Tyler. “Calvary Chapel did what the Church has always been called to do: gather in worship, stand in faith, and care for one another in a time of fear and deep need.”
Attorneys say the $1.2 million in fines are based on a temporary restraining order later ruled unconstitutional and are therefore unenforceable.
“Under the Eighth Amendment, excessive fines are prohibited, especially when imposed on citizens exercising core First Amendment rights,” attorneys said in a statement. “Calvary Chapel acted in good faith, followed its calling, and saw no COVID-19 cases linked to its services. Yet Santa Clara County treated them like criminals.”
“We answer first and foremost to God,” McClure said. “When government commands what God forbids, or forbids what God commands, they have crossed a line our founders would have never permitted and our duty is clear. We gathered in obedience to Christ, and we will continue to stand firm in our allegiance to our Creator who is worthy of our praise. Our trust is not in the courts, but in the Lord who sees and judges righteously.”
At the height of the pandemic, the church and McClure were held in contempt and fined for violating a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction for holding in-person worship services in 2020 and 2021.
A March 2023 report from investigative journalist David Zweig alleged that enforcement officers with Santa Clara County began spying on the congregation at Calvary Chapel San Jose, including “tracking the cellular mobility data of churchgoers.”
Alleged to have begun in August 2020, the Santa Clara County surveillance operation included “stakeouts, forced in-person monitoring of prayer groups and other intimate activities, and tracking the cellular mobility data of churchgoers,” according to Zweig.
A spokesperson for the County of Santa Clara told CP at the time that the allegations were “false assertions” that do “not reflect an understanding of basic facts of the County’s public health orders or enforcement program.” The spokesperson also denied Santa Clara County issued “any restrictions specific to churches or religious institutions whatsoever.”
