Maui, church settle suits

Hale O Kaula says the $700,000 deal
does not cover its costs and stress

WAILUKU » Maui County's insurance carrier will pay $700,000 to a small church to settle religious discrimination lawsuits in state and federal courts, county officials said yesterday.

Hale O Kaula Church filed lawsuits against the county after the Maui Planning Commission denied it a permit to build a chapel on agricultural land in Upcountry Maui in 2001. The Christian church argued it was a victim of religious discrimination.

The commission agreed to grant a five-year special-use permit to Hale O Kaula Church on Nov. 17 to build the chapel, reversing the previous denial.

Church attorney Anthony Picarello said yesterday he is pleased because Hale O Kaula members are now able to worship at the site.

But he said the $700,000 does not begin to cover the cost of the lawsuit or the emotional distress suffered by the church members.

"If we had gone to trial and won, the numbers would have been very much bigger. ... The church actually suffered here," said Picarello, president and general counsel for the Washington, D.C.-based Becket Fund.

County officials said its insurance carrier, Royal & SunAlliance, decided to pay the settlement rather than proceed to trial.

Deputy Corporation Counsel Madelyn D'Enbeau said the settlement releases the county from all claims arising from the church's lawsuits.

D'Enbeau said U.S. District Judge Sam King has halted legal proceedings brought by the U.S. Department of Justice against the county regarding the church's claim of religious discrimination.

D'Enbeau said the U.S. Attorney has filed a motion to dismiss the case, but the county wants some assurance a similar lawsuit will not be brought in the future.

Several neighbors have opposed the new chapel, saying it would generate too much traffic on the private road and that the area lacks the proper infrastructure.

Hale O Kaula, a congregation of 60 affiliated with the Living Word Fellowship, alleged that the county violated the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, which requires governments to show compelling interest, such as public safety, before denying such zoning requests.