Don and Kathy Hamilton, along with their son Austin and his wife Eliza, purchased a church building in the Township of Windsor, Michigan in January 2024 with the vision of opening a new church called the Tarrington. The church seeks to operate the church and host worship services, Bible studies, weddings, and funerals, among other religious activities.
After finishing all the building renovations, the Township sent the church a cease-and-desist letter, claiming the church was operating an illegal event venue in a residential zone. The Township cited the Church with $4,500 in fines for hosting three weddings, two of which were for family and friends. Additionally, the Township fire chief arbitrarily limited the occupancy of the building to 50 people, despite the fact that the building can hold 400, and restricted the Church’s operating hours to just a few hours per week. In response to this clear religious discrimination, First Liberty Institute filed a demand letter.
Then in June 2026, First Liberty Institute filed a federal lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan on behalf of The Tarrington Church.
“The First Amendment and federal law protect the right of churches to operate freely from unreasonable and intrusive government interference,” said Ryan Gardner, Senior Counsel at First Liberty. “The Township’s repeated efforts to use the petty tools of government prevent this church from participating in its religious activities at a site where Christians have been gathering for decades cannot continue.”
In the complaint, attorneys state, the Township is applying its ordinances in a “in a draconian manner to severely curtail or outright prohibit religious activity at the Church’s property based upon its own misguided notion of which religious gatherings are religious enough to qualify as protected activity under state and federal law.”
News Release
For Immediate Release: 6.2.25
Contact: John Manning, media@firstliberty.org
Direct: 972-941-4453
Church Files Federal Lawsuit After Township of Windsor, MI Prohibits all Religious Activity in Church Building
The Tarrington Church faces religious discrimination while other churches and secular event facilities operate without any government interference.
Windsor, MI— First Liberty Institute filed a federal lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan on behalf of The Tarrington Church after the Township of Windsor pursued a multi-year campaign to restrict or prevent the Church from engaging in religious activity in a church building where people have been gathering for nearly 60 years.
You can read the complaint here.
“The First Amendment and federal law protect the right of churches to operate freely from unreasonable and intrusive government interference,” said Ryan Gardner, Senior Counsel at First Liberty. “The Township’s repeated efforts to use the petty tools of government prevent this church from participating in its religious activities at a site where Christians have been gathering for decades cannot continue.”
The Church owns an abandoned church building that resides in the Township of Windsor, Michigan. After nonstructural building renovations were complete, the church began to host worship services, Bible studies, and weddings, among other religious activities. The Township sent the church a cease-and-desist letter claiming the church was operating an illegal event venue in a residential zone and issued $4,500 in fines for three weddings held on the Church’s property, two of which were for family and friends. A Final Determination regarding the church’s legal, non-conforming use limited the church to Sunday morning services with no more than 60 people, allowed only 4–6 community events per year and all events must conclude by 9:00 pm. Other churches and secular event facilities are not bound by the same restrictions. For over two years, the Church has attempted in good faith to work with the Township to satisfy its shifting demands, but in May, the Township amped up its efforts to prevent religious activity at the Church’s property.
In the complaint, attorneys state, the Township is applying its ordinances in a “in a draconian manner to severely curtail or outright prohibit religious activity at the Church’s property based upon its own misguided notion of which religious gatherings are religious enough to qualify as protected activity under state and federal law.”
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About First Liberty Institute
First Liberty Institute is a non-profit public interest law firm and the largest legal organization in the nation dedicated exclusively to defending religious freedom for all Americans.
To arrange an interview, contact John Manning at media@firstliberty.org or by calling 972-941-4453.
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