Source: Associated Press
http://www.fac.org/rel_liberty/publiclife/news.aspx?id=12030
On October 6, 2003 Associated Press reported that "a federal judge has ruled a New Milford family has the right to hold prayer meetings at home." The decision to permit meetings came after a town zoning-enforcement officer blocked the meetings at Robert and Mary Murphy's Jefferson Drive home in 2000 after neighbors complained about the crowds at the Sunday gatherings. After an ensuing legal battle, on Oct. 3, U.S. Magistrate Judge Holly B. Fitzsimmons "gave a permanent order that said the town had hindered the Murphys' rights to exercise their religion and to peaceably assemble. 'This is about religious freedom,' the Murphys' attorney, Vincent McCarthy, of the American Center for Law and Justice, told The News-Times of Danbury. 'This is a victory for people who want to do what they want to in their own homes.'"