Ohio Pastor Chris Avell, who has been allowing unhoused people to sleep at his church overnight, has been found guilty of a criminal charge for failing to observe city fire codes. The ruling, handed down on Tuesday, Jan. 21, is the latest in a protracted legal battle between Avell’s church, Dad’s Place, and the City of Bryan.
“The City of Bryan reiterates that no decision has been made to prevent Dad’s Place from operating as a church,” said Bryan Mayor Carrie Schlade in a statement Tuesday. “However, the residential operations of the facility must cease until proper building and fire code applications are filed and approved by the State of Ohio.”
“The city will continue to work with the appropriate agencies to address homelessness and support faith-based organizations in fulfilling their missions while ensuring the safety of the broader community,” she said.
First Liberty Institute, the legal firm representing Pastor Chris Avell, also issued a statement. “No pastor in America, including Pastor Chris Avell, should be pronounced guilty for providing temporary shelter to those in desperate need,” said Attorney Ryan Gardner. “Only government officials could say with a straight face that people are safer in the sub-zero temperatures on the street than inside the warmth of a church.”
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Pastor Chris Avell Gets 30-Day Stay of Penalties
According to First Liberty, it was in March 2023 that Avell “began operating his ministry 24 hours a day to serve the most vulnerable in his local community.” The legal battle between Pastor Chris Avell and the City of Bryan began in October 2023 when the city “sent a cease and desist letter to the Church, ordering it to stop allowing overnight guests within 10 days or face criminal prosecution, with each day of operation constituting a new criminal offense.”
“After the Church refused to comply, the City filed 18 separate criminal charges,” said First Liberty.
In a January 2024 press release, the city said that after Avell began ministry operations in March 2023, the city “began seeing an increase in calls for service to the Bryan Police Department based on inappropriate activity at Dad’s Place.”
“Some of the calls were for criminal mischief, trespassing, overdose, larceny, harassment, disturbing the peace and sexual assault,” said the city.
The January 2024 press release is 42 pages long and contains documents including a police report about a sex offender allegedly staying on the premises with Avell’s knowledge and the zoning violations that were discovered.
In the press release, the city explains why it believes Avell knew about the zoning restrictions. It lists zoning violations by Dad’s Place, such as “improper installation of laundry facilities, inadequate or unsafe exit areas…no permitted and approved kitchen hood over the stove, and limited ventilation.”
