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A lawyer representing Lighthouse Baptist Church in Horseheads, the source of a rapidly growing cluster of COVID-19 cases across New York, said Thursday the church is asking Chemung County to remove an order of closure, claiming its First Amendment rights have been violated.

In a statement, Buffalo attorneyJames Ostrowskisaid the church "is committed to cooperating with the County to reopen the Church in a manner consistent with the health of the community," but threatened a federal lawsuit if the county does not allow "free exercise of their religion."

About 300 people across New York have been diagnosed or identified as contacts potentially exposed to COVID-19 as a result of the cluster, according to the state health department. As of Monday, 75 confirmed cases in Chemung County and 15 cases in other counties are tied to the cluster.

Chemung County health officials originally traced a cluster of five positive cases to Lighthouse Baptist Church in early September.The number of confirmed cases quickly ballooned to at least 45 across multiple counties as officials learned several members of the Horseheads congregation attended a wedding in late August in Oneida County.

Lighthouse Baptist Church lawyer's statement

Ostrowski said the church voluntarily suspended services Sept. 6 after learning two members of its congregation tested positive and encouraged its members to be tested and quarantine.

He also claimed the church supplied a list of recent church attendees to county officials. Chemung County Executive Chris Moss has previously stated a list of members was received after the county filed a subpoena.

Ostrowski pointed to a "false media report" saying the church opposed proper medical treatment. The lawyer could not be reached for comment to clarify the claim Thursday.

Previously, county officials said the church was not cooperating with the contact tracing, and Mosssaid of church leaders, "They said, 'God will look out for them.' But they are coming in contact with elderly folks and children and the outbreak grows and grows."

Lighthouse Baptist Church has refused to comment publicly on the cluster in its church despite being contacted multiple times.

Ostrowski further denied the cluster's connection to thedeath of a 76-year-old Chemung County man, who county health officials have said was not a member of the churchbut came into contact with someone who is.

"The Church had received no definitive proof that this tragic death was related to any church activity," he said.

COVID-19 church closures across New York

The Lighthouse Baptist Church is not the first religious institution that has faced a temporary closure order amid the COVID-19 pandemic in New York.

In March, New York halted services atthe Young Israel synagogue in New Rochelle, Westchester County, after discovering the state's first COVID-19 cluster. The virus spread to hundreds of congregants after a man who unknowingly had COVID-19 attended a crowded funeral service and bat mitzvah.

In June, a federal judge struck down an order from Gov. Andrew Cuomo that capped capacity at religious services to 25% and 33% in Phase 2 and 3, respectively, of the state's reopening process.

Instead, U.S. District Judge Gary Sharp allowed religious institutions to have 50% capacity for indoor services, the same cap afforded to restaurants, noting the state's previous limits should have applied equally.

Ostroswki said "the County itself must comply with the law in this regard or risk federal court litigation."

USA Today Network reporter Jon Campbell contributed to this report. Follow Katie Sullivan Borrelli on Twitter @ByKatieBorrelli. Support our journalism and become a digital subscriber today. Click here for our special offers.

This article originally appeared on Elmira Star-Gazette: Lawyer: Horseheads church should be reopened, First Amendment rights have been violated

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