Judge dismisses Christian Nationalist Sean Feucht’s lawsuit against Spokane and city council members

A lawsuit filed by Christian nationalist Sean Feucht against the city of Spokane and several City Council members last year was dismissed by a superior court judge Thursday.

The lawsuit alleged that the City Council violated Feucht’s constitutional rights to freedom of speech and religion when they formally denounced former Mayor Nadine Woodward for attending an event alongside “alleged domestic terrorist, Matt Shea, and known anti-LGBTQ extremist Sean Feucht.”

The resolution to denounce Woodward was, per a 2023 council agenda sheet, directly in alignment with the then-recently passed motto, “In Spokane, We All Belong.”

Initially filed in part by Pasco Mayor and Silent Majority Foundation lawyer Pete Serrano, the lawsuit claimed that the resolution was intended to “target Feucht’s sincere religious practice” through condemning joining him in prayer, among other allegations.

Serrano withdrew as Feucht’s attorney on Aug. 8, court records show, one day after The Spokesman-Review reported Serrano was chosen as the new U.S. interim Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington.

More than a year after the filing, Superior Court Judge Rachelle Anderson dismissed the lawsuit against the city, council members Zack Zappone and Betsy Wilkerson, and former council members Lori Kinnear and Karen Stratton.

The dismissal states that Feucht “is unable to show conduct that violated any constitutional right” in his lawsuit.

“Any criticism of (Feucht) was indirect, in that the Resolution denounced conduct of the then mayor, Ms. Woodward,” the dismissal read. “(Feucht) has shown no established precedential law that protects an individual from being criticized, albeit indirectly.”

In a news release, Mayor Lisa Brown, Zappone and Wilkerson issued the following shared statement:

“The Superior Court’s thorough and clear ruling is a complete victory for the city of Spokane. Today’s decision reaffirms what we have maintained all along: that there was no legal merit to Mr. Feucht’s claims. At a time when extremism is on the rise, it is reassuring that the Court upheld the Constitution and our community’s values.”

Marshall Casey, one of Feucht’s lead attorneys, criticized Anderson’s dismissal.

“I do have to respect the work that Judge Anderson put into it, but I think she got it wrong,” Casey said, adding that he believes his client’s case is correct and that the City Council “absolutely attacked Sean Feucht’s religious beliefs.”

In particular, Casey said that he doesn’t “believe people should get free passes from following the constitution” in response to the city and its council members being granted qualified immunity, which shields government officials from liability in a lawsuit if they haven’t violated a constitutional right.

Though he hadn’t talked about it with Feucht as of Thursday afternoon, Casey said he anticipates taking the case to the court of appeals.

Casey said that he preferred Feucht not comment directly to The Spokesman-Review.

Spokesman-Review Reporter Alexandra Duggan contributed to this story.