Michigan Catholic group wins zoning fight over display of Stations of the Cross

By ED WHITE
Associated Press

DETROIT (AP) — A township in southeastern Michigan has been ordered to allow a Catholic group to post religious displays on a privately owned “prayer trail” depicting the last day of Jesus. A federal appeals court issued an injunction Monday in favor of Catholic Healthcare International. The group controls the 40-acre parcel in Genoa Township in Livingston County. The township had said the group needed a special-use permit because the project was the equivalent of a church building. That permit was ultimately rejected. But in a 3-0 opinion, the appeals court says the township likely violated the group’s rights, and ordered the prayer trail rebuilt.