The Ottawa County Board of Commissioners settled a lawsuit brought by Grand Haven pastor Rev. Jared Cramer, agreeing to pay $100,000 over religious discrimination claims. According to WOODTV, the settlement was passed with a 9-2 vote during Tuesday's board meeting. The complaint filed by Cramer accused the county and Board Chair Joe Moss of not allowing him to lead an invocation at a commission meeting due to his advocacy for the LGBTQ+ community.
Initially filed in October 2023, the lawsuit suggested Moss's disagreement with Cramer's beliefs might have been a deciding factor in the denial. MLive reported the settlement requires Ottawa County to address the payment and fully implement a set of revised invocation guidelines that dictate prayer at board meetings is open to anyone on a first-come, first-served basis.
Details from the settlement outline that $26,000 will cover attorney fees, with the remainder distributed to various charitable organizations and trusts. As specified by WOODTV, one-third of the $74,000 is set to go each to the Ed and Nancy Hanenburg Children’s Advocacy Center, Kenzie‘s Be Café, and a charity of Cramer’s choosing. An interview with the pastor mentioned his intention for the settlement to benefit good causes rather than himself, saying, "It would have felt dirty," about personally profiting from the board's actions, as detailed by MLive.
Furthermore, according to WGVU News, the settlement followed closely on another recent financial decision by the county, having awarded $225,000 in an age discrimination lawsuit and $188,000 for attorney fees to a wrongfully terminated health officer. Cramer highlighted the broader implications of these settlements by stating in his prayer, "I pray that decency love and justice will once more come to the forefront of how our county operates." A federal magistrate judge must still approve the agreement to take full effect.
