| Posted by
CN Staff on December 06,
2005 at 13:29:29 PT By Norman Sinclair, The Detroit News Source: Detroit News 
Detroit -- In a lawsuit filed on his behalf by the
civil rights group, a 23-year-old Catholic man from Genesee County is
asking a federal judge to set aside a drug conviction, saying he was
punished for not completing a Pentecostal rehabilitation program.
Joseph Hanas was 19 when he pleaded guilty to a marijuana possession charge in February 2001 in Genesee Circuit Court and was placed in a diversion program for young, non-violent offenders. Upon the recommendation of a probation officer, Judge Robert Ransom sentenced Hanas to the state-sponsored rehabilitation program - the Inner City Christian Outreach Residential Program, run by a Pentecostal church. Hanas said the program did not offer drug treatment or counseling, nor did it have any organized program other than reading the Bible and attending Pentecostal services. He said his rosary and prayer book was taken from him and his religion was denounced as witchcraft. Hanas said he was told his only chance of avoiding prison and a felony record was to convert to the Pentecostal faith. After seven weeks, his mother and lawyers for the American Civil Liberties Union in Flint succeeded in getting Hanas back to court. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Detroit, claims Ransom acknowledged the failings of the center but ruled that Hanas did not satisfactorily complete the program and sentenced him to three months in jail, three months in a boot camp, and placed him on a tether for three months. Ransom also placed Hanas on four years probation, which he continues to serve. This man was punished for insisting on the right to practice Catholicism and refusing conversion to the Pentecostal faith, said Kary Moss, director of the Michigan ACLU. The pastor who operates the center, Rev. Richard Rottiers could not be reached for comment. Ransom has retired. Before leaving the bench he said he would not send any more prisoners to the Inner City center, citing a lack of accountability. Complete Title: ACLU Sues Over Faith-Based Rehab: Catholic Man Forced into Pentecostal Program Source: Detroit News (MI) Related Articles & Web Site: ACLU Faith-Based Drug Wars Faith is a Key - Washington Times U.S. Asks Church Groups' Help Vs. Drugs
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