Florida pastor arrested after holding crowded Sunday service amid 'safer-at-home' order

(Image credit: AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

published 30 March 2020

A Florida pastor was arrested on Monday and charged with unlawful assembly and violation of public health emergency rules after authorities say his church violated a "safer-at-home" order.

In an attempt to slow down the spread of coronavirus, Hillsborough County officials on Friday ordered all essential businesses and organizations to keep customers and employees six feet away from each other, or shut down. Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said authorities received an anonymous tip on Sunday about Dr. Rodney Howard-Browne of The River at Tampa Bay Church, with the person saying Howard-Browne "refused a request to temporarily stop holding large gatherings at his church. Instead, he was encouraging his large congregation to meet at his church."

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

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