A federal judge says attorneys for an Islamic group were out of line when they subpoenaed personal e-mail and other documents from residents who opposed the building of an Islamic school in Pittsfield Township, Washtenaw County, Michigan.
Magistrate Judge David Grand of Ann Arbor, in a ruling last week, said the subpoenas threatened the constitutional rights to free speech of the residents and ordered their attorney fees and costs to be compensated.
The Muslim Community Association and Michigan Islamic Academy in Ann Arbor want to build a school and community center in neighboring Pittsfield Township, but township officials have rejected their plans, citing traffic and congestion concerns.
In 2012, attorneys with the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) filed a lawsuit on behalf of the Muslim Community Association and Michigan Islamic Academy, alleging that anti-Islam bias motivated the townships rejection. Township officials have said their rejection had nothing to do with religion.
Earlier this year, attorneys with CAIR sent subpoenas to several residents in Pittsfield Township who opposed building the school, demanding personal e-mails, documents and correspondence concerning their communication with township officials.
They also asked one resident, Zaba Davis to appear at deposition in Bingham Farms.
On April 15, attorneys with the American Freedom Law Center, representing the seven residents, filed a motion asking the judge to quash the subpoenas.
In his July 2 decision, Grand granted the request, writing that he was concerned by the chilling effect that allowing the subpoenas would have on speech, not only for Davis, but for all others who wish to be involved in public discourse on matters of public concern. 
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