Former policeman sues Walnutport for alleged retaliation
He says officials tried to ruin his career after he was investigated.
By Elliot Grossman
Of The Morning Call

A former Walnutport police detective is suing the borough for allegedly retaliating against him after he opposed an investigation that may have focused on his sexual preference and off-duty conduct.

Troy Keenhold said the Police Department, mayor and council members violated his civil rights, including his First Amendment rights. First Amendment protections include free speech.

Borough officials acted with ''personal animosity'' against Keenhold with an intent to destroy his career as a police officer, according to his lawsuit.

In legal papers, the borough asked that the First Amendment claim be dismissed. Neither a judge nor a jury could find the borough retaliated against Keenhold because it did not discipline him after the investigation, according to the borough's lawyers.


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Black clergy gathering to fight gay matrimony
Don Lattin, Chronicle Religion Writer

Conservative evangelical groups -- including the Christian men's movement, Promise Keepers -- are mobilizing African American church leaders for a renewed campaign against same-sex marriage.

Some of the nation's best-known black clergymen will come together in Washington, D.C., on Monday to denounce homosexual unions -- the same day judges in Massachusetts begin issuing marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples. The Supreme Court refused Friday to intervene and block clerks from issuing these marriage licenses.

The gathering on Capitol Hill will be followed next weekend with a large rally in Texas called "Not on My Watch."

Organizers of both events challenge comparisons many gay rights leaders have made between the campaign for same-sex marriage and the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s.