California regulators have cleared Calvary Chapel San Jose (CCSJ) and its affiliated Calvary Christian Academy (CCA) of all workplace safety citations issued during the height of the state’s COVID-19 mandates, marking a complete legal victory for the religious institutions.
The dispute began in December 2020, when Cal/OSHA inspectors visited both the church and school following complaints alleging that students were not wearing masks.
According to attorneys with Advocates for Faith & Freedom, the agency soon sought a court-approved warrant to conduct a more extensive inspection, petitioning the Santa Clara County Superior Court based on what the legal team says was a flawed affidavit.
Although attorneys argued the affidavit lacked proper factual support, a judge nevertheless approved the warrant. That decision paved the way for 15 citations and fines that reached a total of $67,330.
Representing the church and school, Advocates for Faith & Freedom filed a motion to suppress all evidence gathered under the warrant, insisting that the warrant failed to meet the Fourth Amendment’s requirement for specific and articulable facts. The Superior Court agreed and excluded the evidence from further use.
With the underlying evidence invalidated, Cal/OSHA moved to withdraw every remaining citation against CCSJ and CCA.
The agency determined there was no finding of wrongdoing, while the church and school admitted no fault. The resolution cannot be used against them in any future proceedings, attorneys announced this week.
“This is a complete victory, not only for Calvary Christian Academy, but for every church and Christian school in California,” said Joel Oster, Vice President and Chief of Trial Litigation for Advocates for Faith & Freedom. “The State tried to use OSHA as a weapon to intimidate a religious institution. They failed. And they were forced to walk away from their own claims.”
Attorney Nicolai Cocis, who also represented the ministry, praised the ruling as a constitutional safeguard, stating the decision “upheld the constitutional rights of Calvary Chapel San Jose and Calvary Christian Academy. “This ruling underscores the importance of due process and the protection of religious freedoms against unwarranted governmental overreach.”
Earlier this month, Advocates for Faith & Freedom announced its intention to join the American Center for Law & Justice (ACLJ) in defending Calvary Chapel San Jose Pastor Mike McClure before the U.S. Supreme Court, seeking to have more than $1.2 million in fines levied under Gov. Gavin Newsom thrown out.
Attorneys say Supreme Court precedents—including Tandon v. Newsom—have consistently affirmed that “religious gatherings cannot be treated worse than comparable secular activities.”
Advocates for Faith & Freedom and the ACLJ are expected to submit their petition to the court in the coming weeks.
