CHURCH HOPES TO KEEP JURORS FROM SEEING VIDEO CLIP

When a religious rights trial centered on a Bullskin Township church
goes to federal court, attorneys for the Church of Universal Love and
Music do not want jurors to see a videotaped segment on the dispute
that aired on a Comedy Central television show.

Five years ago, "The Daily Show," a half-hour show hosted by comic
Jon Stewart, did a four-minute segment on religious freedom that
featured the church.

The clip, a video of which is still on the show's Web site,
originally aired on Aug. 7, 2003, and showed "The Daily Show"
correspondent Ed Helms interviewing church founder William "Willie"
Pritts.

Pritts sued, claiming that Fayette County, through its zoning hearing
board, has stifled his ability to practice his religion by not
granting him a special exception or rezoning of his land. The
church's religious worship is centered in music, and neighbors have
complained that the music amounts to all-night concerts that cause a
safety hazard and disturb their life in quiet Acme.

In the clip, Pritts said that a typical worship service "has a lot of
good jam bands going on."

When Helms asked Pritts what the church's policy is on "bogarting,"
Pritts replied, "Bogarting a joint? Uh, it's kinda rude not to share."

Bogarting is slang for sharing a marijuana cigarette.

He also told Helms that, "God never said you can't party
on."

But church attorney Gregory O. Koerner said Monday that a tape of the
show was "clearly inadmissible" at trial.

"The video was part of a television comedy show, and the comments in
that video that are attributable to plaintiff William D. Pritts were
heavily edited to suit the show's agenda. Furthermore, nothing else
in 'The Daily Show' on Comedy Central is even remotely relevant to
the serious issues raised by CULM's claims in this case," Koerner
wrote.

Another of the motions filed in the case came from county attorney
Marie Millie Jones, who indicated that a federal judge should block
Koerner from calling zoning hearing board solicitor Gretchen Mundorff
to testify.

Mundorff was originally named as a defendant, but was later dismissed
from the suit. Filings in the case have alleged she, as solicitor for
the hearing board, recommended the members grant the request for a
special exception.

Jones said that she expects Pritts' attorneys to try and introduce
the alleged recommendation during the upcoming trial. Jones said it
should not be introduced because the board did not receive a copy of
the letter, and because it is subject to attorney-client privilege.

The board would have to waive that privilege and has not, Jones wrote
in the filing.

"A zoning hearing board solicitor's recommendation that her client
grant a special exception constitutes legal advice," Jones wrote.

Attached to the filing was a letter from Mundorff to the church's
attorneys.

In it, she indicated that during the board's deliberations on April
21, 2005, she recommended granting the exception, but imposing
conditions to protect the health, safety and welfare of residents in
the area.

Chief U.S. District Judge Donetta W. Ambrose will rule on the motions
at a later date.