The battle over a cemetery being planned at a Murfreesboro mosque didn’t end when Monday’s hearing did. Afterwards, a heated confrontation erupted in a courthouse hallway involving supporters and opponents.
The board of zoning appeals approved the cemetery in January, but opponents were seeking an injunction Monday, hoping to stop the cemetery at the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro from moving forward. They claim there is standing water at the site and traffic concerns.
But the shocker came when a motion asking Judge Robert Corlew III to recuse himself was granted.
“We’ll go to another judge because the Islamic center didn’t think Judge Corlew could give them a fair trial. I think it was sad today for all the people took off work to be here,” said mosque opponent Lou Ann Zelenick.
Emotions were high following the hearing, as mosque opponents claimed a student journalist from the University of Maryland was secretly recording even though she had been right alongside other members of the media in the public courthouse.
“You’re really inciting work. It’s scary what you’re doing,” Zelenick said.
“The level of emotion in this case has been high throughout, and I think that spilled over after the judge decided to step down,” said attorney John Green, who is representing the mosque.
The plaintiffs have 15 days to appeal the judge’s ruling or can wait on the clerk of the court to appoint a new judge.