I am attaching a letter the DOJ sent to Montgomery County, Maryland about the issue of protests and religious assemblies in case you have not seen it. Here is an excerpt: In light of your recent statement of support for protests like those that took place throughout Montgomery County, we anticipate that you will amend Executive Order No. 070-20 to set forth the conditions under which Montgomery County residents may gather peaceably to exercise the full range of rights protected by the First Amendment. We urge you to ensure that your Executive Orders and enforcement of them respect both the right of your residents to assemble to express their views and the right to practice their faith. We understand that protests are typically held outdoors-where the risk of COVID-19 transmission is lower-and that religious services are typically held indoors. But the protest held in Bethesda on June 2 reportedly involved hundreds of persons packed into a library; to amend (or selectively enforce) the Order to permit gatherings of more than 10 people for political protest yet deny similar gatherings for religious exercise would raise grave concerns under the Constitution. Compliance with the First Amendment is not optional, and the First Amendment protects both free exercise and assembly rights. The Department of Justice does not seek to dictate how Montgomery County determines what degree of activity and personal interaction should be allowed to protect the safety of their citizens. But in identifying the conditions under which gatherings for protest may proceed in Montgomery County, the Council should ensure that it imposes no more onerous conditions on gatherings for religious exercise than it does on gatherings for other purposes. [photo] Amanda Kellar Deputy General Counsel / Director of Legal Advocacy International Municipal Lawyers Association, Inc. A 51 Monroe St., Suite 404, Rockville, MD, 20850 [cid:image003.jpg@01D642FB.2D7C8C90]<http://www.facebook.com/IMLA-259977855541/> [cid:image004.jpg@01D642FB.2D7C8C90] <http://www.linkedin.com/company/international-municipal-lawyers-association-inc./> [cid:image005.jpg@01D642FB.2D7C8C90] <http://twitter.com/imlalegal> [cid:image006.jpg@01D642FB.2D7C8C90] <http://soundcloud.com/internationalmunicipallawyersassociation> P (202) 466-5424 ext. 7116 W www.imla.org<http://www.imla.org/> Plan Ahead! IMLA's 85th Annual Conference<http://imla.org/events/conferences>, September 23-27 in La Quinta, CA! IMLA's 2021 Mid-Year Seminar<https://imla.org/events/seminars>, April 23-26, 2021 in Washington, DC!

The DOJ letter hinges on a material misstatement of fact. The DOJ letter asserts "[b]ut the protest held in Bethesda on June 2 reportedly involved hundreds of persons packed into a library." This simply never happened. The libraries in Montgomery County have been closed for weeks due to the pandemic. The Bethesda Library was not opened to protesters, and the argument made by DOJ collapses. Marc Hansen County Attorney Montgomery County, Maryland From: Disasterrelief <disasterrelief-bounces@lists.imla.org> On Behalf Of Amanda Kellar Sent: Monday, June 15, 2020 9:57 AM To: Disasterrelief@lists.imla.org Subject: [Disasterrelief] US DOJ letter re: protests and religious assembly [EXTERNAL EMAIL] I am attaching a letter the DOJ sent to Montgomery County, Maryland about the issue of protests and religious assemblies in case you have not seen it. Here is an excerpt: In light of your recent statement of support for protests like those that took place throughout Montgomery County, we anticipate that you will amend Executive Order No. 070-20 to set forth the conditions under which Montgomery County residents may gather peaceably to exercise the full range of rights protected by the First Amendment. We urge you to ensure that your Executive Orders and enforcement of them respect both the right of your residents to assemble to express their views and the right to practice their faith. We understand that protests are typically held outdoors-where the risk of COVID-19 transmission is lower-and that religious services are typically held indoors. But the protest held in Bethesda on June 2 reportedly involved hundreds of persons packed into a library; to amend (or selectively enforce) the Order to permit gatherings of more than 10 people for political protest yet deny similar gatherings for religious exercise would raise grave concerns under the Constitution. Compliance with the First Amendment is not optional, and the First Amendment protects both free exercise and assembly rights. The Department of Justice does not seek to dictate how Montgomery County determines what degree of activity and personal interaction should be allowed to protect the safety of their citizens. But in identifying the conditions under which gatherings for protest may proceed in Montgomery County, the Council should ensure that it imposes no more onerous conditions on gatherings for religious exercise than it does on gatherings for other purposes. [photo] Amanda Kellar Deputy General Counsel / Director of Legal Advocacy International Municipal Lawyers Association, Inc. A 51 Monroe St., Suite 404, Rockville, MD, 20850 [cid:image008.jpg@01D64305.A63DE520]<https://gcc01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FIMLA-259977855541%2F&data=02%7C01%7CMarc.Hansen%40montgomerycountymd.gov%7Cb3ec614cb98c4c1521f408d8113460b5%7C6e01b1f9b1e54073ac97778069a0ad64%7C0%7C0%7C637278264095161524&sdata=cAVsIw88lbpGrWbNRSxsZewr%2Bxoqm%2BduSYxr0uyBzFA%3D&reserved=0> [cid:image009.jpg@01D64305.A63DE520] <https://gcc01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fcompany%2Finternational-municipal-lawyers-association-inc.%2F&data=02%7C01%7CMarc.Hansen%40montgomerycountymd.gov%7Cb3ec614cb98c4c1521f408d8113460b5%7C6e01b1f9b1e54073ac97778069a0ad64%7C0%7C0%7C637278264095161524&sdata=7doi6zm4SsqNrU6Tz8jTtPeB%2BiW0FXCykG6pEJ2AU9Y%3D&reserved=0> [cid:image010.jpg@01D64305.A63DE520] <https://gcc01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2Fimlalegal&data=02%7C01%7CMarc.Hansen%40montgomerycountymd.gov%7Cb3ec614cb98c4c1521f408d8113460b5%7C6e01b1f9b1e54073ac97778069a0ad64%7C0%7C0%7C637278264095171520&sdata=H%2FTe7bV%2FGHAbb%2BbcPtdtXnhxkjZtUbwQoTxf6c0DV%2BI%3D&reserved=0> [cid:image011.jpg@01D64305.A63DE520] <https://gcc01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fsoundcloud.com%2Finternationalmunicipallawyersassociation&data=02%7C01%7CMarc.Hansen%40montgomerycountymd.gov%7Cb3ec614cb98c4c1521f408d8113460b5%7C6e01b1f9b1e54073ac97778069a0ad64%7C0%7C0%7C637278264095171520&sdata=hodCm6Or4Bvorg8Vq6B41v5HPet32uDpfWqz4JOzqS0%3D&reserved=0> P (202) 466-5424 ext. 7116 W www.imla.org<https://gcc01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.imla.org%2F&data=02%7C01%7CMarc.Hansen%40montgomerycountymd.gov%7Cb3ec614cb98c4c1521f408d8113460b5%7C6e01b1f9b1e54073ac97778069a0ad64%7C0%7C0%7C637278264095181510&sdata=CChRSZvbjWkVmJvcluPAuIEX0HpWeRwXlF5X0g7WMRk%3D&reserved=0> Plan Ahead! IMLA's 85th Annual Conference<https://gcc01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fimla.org%2Fevents%2Fconferences&data=02%7C01%7CMarc.Hansen%40montgomerycountymd.gov%7Cb3ec614cb98c4c1521f408d8113460b5%7C6e01b1f9b1e54073ac97778069a0ad64%7C0%7C0%7C637278264095181510&sdata=5kF8hAs8N0jqD5Gg5ldHGdDluCkUvfJKZsAbedxFuA4%3D&reserved=0>, September 23-27 in La Quinta, CA! IMLA's 2021 Mid-Year Seminar<https://gcc01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimla.org%2Fevents%2Fseminars&data=02%7C01%7CMarc.Hansen%40montgomerycountymd.gov%7Cb3ec614cb98c4c1521f408d8113460b5%7C6e01b1f9b1e54073ac97778069a0ad64%7C0%7C0%7C637278264095181510&sdata=E14N4qBLLihDUFQLSUPKbwrPNjGLdi09QY%2BGczFlRDo%3D&reserved=0>, April 23-26, 2021 in Washington, DC! Take 10 minutes to be counted now - visit: https://2020census.gov/ [https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/mcg/Resources/Images/stay-home-covid19.jpg] For COVID-19 Information and resources, visit: www.montgomerycountymd.gov/COVID19<https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/COVID19>