SPRINGFIELD (MA)
The Republican
By Jeanette DeForge, The Republican
SPRINGFIELD – A Hampden Superior Court judge declined to order protesters of Mater Dolorosa Church to leave the Holyoke building, saying the separation of church and state denies him that authority.
While protesters celebrated the decision – even though three of their own counterclaims were denied – officials for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield said they are considering an appeal.
Judge Cornelius J. Moriarty II said there was a flaw in the argument of the diocese that said the case is a simple question of building ownership.
“The law of trespass necessarily requires an examination of whether the alleged trespasser possesses a right of entry,” Moriarty wrote in his explanation, saying that decision is a matter of canon law.
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