Capistrano Couple in Legal Battle for Hosting Bible Study in Home
A city best known for its historic Catholic Mission is facing a lawsuit from a couple cited by code-enforcement officers for holding a Bible study in their home.
Chuck and Stephanie Fromm paid $200 in fines after receiving at least two citations from the city of San Juan Capistrano. They appealed the tickets to a hearing officer who sided with the city, leading to the August 31 lawsuit in Orange County Superior Court.
“How dare they tell us we can’t have whatever we want in our home,†Stephanie Fromm said. “We want to be able to use our home. We’ve paid a lot and invested a lot in our home and backyard … I should be able to be hospitable in my home.â€
The Fromms are 18-year residents of Capistrano, moving to their Capistrano home on Branding Iron Road from Laguna Niguel because they saw it as a good place to raise their children—they have five—and run their business. A historic town with a strong equestrian lifestyle, Capistrano is officially 50 years old but grew up around the 234-year-old Mission San Juan Capistrano. Chuck Fromm is publisher of Worship Leader Magazine. Worship Leader is an international 20-year-old magazine for pastors, worship leaders, musicians, vocalists, sound and visual techs, technology stewards, artists and others.
Stephanie Fromm hosts a Bible study on Wednesdays that draws about 20 people, while Chuck Fromm’s Sunday-morning gathering draws as many as 50. But in the neighborhood of large homes on even larger lots—the Fromms live in a 4,700-square-foot home on a parcel that also has a corral, barn, pool and huge back lawn—Stephanie Fromm said parking was never a problem. Neither was noise, she said.
“There’s no singing or music,†she said. “It’s meditative.â€
But according to city records, a code-enforcement officer gave the Fromms a verbal warning about the meetings in May. Citations were issued in May and June, according to city records. San Juan Capistrano City Attorney Omar Sandoval said the city had not yet been served with a copy of the legal action, so he could not comment.
The Fromms’ citations say they violated section 9-3.301 of the Capistrano Municipal Code, which prohibits “religious, fraternal or non-profit†organizations in residential neighborhoods without a conditional-use permit. The footnote on the section says it “Includes churches, temples, synagogues, monasteries, religious retreats, and other places of religious worship and other fraternal and community service organizations.â€
Capistrano’s code-enforcement department is reactive, meaning officers only respond to complaints. Stephanie Fromm said most residents in the neighborhood, off Rancho Viejo Road north of Junipero Serra Road, are supportive of them, although at least one neighbor has voiced concerns.
“We don’t like lawsuits, but we have to stand up for what’s right. It’s not just a personal issue,†Stephanie Fromm said. “Can you imagine anybody in any neighborhood, that one person can call and make it a living hell for someone else? That’s wrong … and it’s just sad.â€
The Fromms are being represented in their lawsuit, an appeal of the hearing officer’s decision, by Michael Peffer of the Pacific Justice Institute in Santa Ana. The trial is set for October 7 in Laguna Hills.
