A federal judge’s decision about if Hermon schools discriminate against a church is at least two months away.
Pines Church, now based in Bangor, sued the Hermon School Department in May 2023, alleging the School Committee rejected the church’s request for a year-long lease to use the high school auditorium for Sunday services due to conservative beliefs about sexual identity and contraceptives.
A judge heard two days of witness testimony Tuesday and Wednesday in U.S. District Court of Maine in Bangor.
The School Committee offered a month-to-month lease after denying a year-long one in December 2022, but the church did not accept. At the time, the church held services in an Orono movie theater.
Testimony ended Wednesday. There were no closing arguments, instead a transcript of the testimony will be prepared, which may take two weeks. After that’s prepared, Pines Church must submit a brief within two weeks.
The Hermon School Department then has two weeks after that to submit a response. Pines Church has another week to submit another response.
After those seven weeks, the judge will review the filings and issue a written decision.
The church claims the board’s rejection of a year-long lease violated protections under the First and 14th amendments to the U.S. Constitution and the accommodation guarantees in the Maine Human Rights Act.