JACKSONVILLE - A group that supports legalizing medical marijuana is suing the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office and election officials after being removed from a church's property while collecting signatures on petitions.

The group, Floridians for Medical Rights, was at the church while it was being used as an election polling place, which it said gives them the right to collect petition signatures.

Rev. Gene Youngblood said he will no longer let First Southern Baptist Church be used for elections and is urging other pastors to follow his lead.
"That is surrendering the Lord's property to the total control of the government for one day," Youngblood said Wednesday after the group announced its lawsuit. "If we allow this petition, nect it will be a gay-rights petition and every other perverted petition."

The lawsuit is the second Floridians for Medical Rights have filed against the sheriff's office and Supervisor of Elections Tommie Bell.

In March, the group settled a lawsuit against Sheriff Nat Glover and Bell, which was filed after members were removed from a polling place in November.

As part of the settlement, a memo was sent to all police officers and election workers explaining that the petitioners have a legal right to be at the polls collection signatures.

kevin Aplin, a volunteer collectiong signatures outside the church during the April 13 city election, said the organization was merely asking voters to sign their petition when Youngblood told them to leave and called police.
Agt. Asa Higgs, also named in the lawsuit, arrived and told them to leave or face arrest. They showed him Glover's memo, which said they had a right to collect signatures, but were still forced to leave, the group said.

Youngblood told members he would have their cars towed from the church parking lot and threatened the members with a baseball bat, Aplin said. But Youngblood denied threatening the group, which he called "potheads."
The new lawsuit is seeking unspecified monetary damages and an injunction to precent the group from being barred from collecting signatures at polling places said Steve Bledsoe, a spokesman for the group.
Officials for the sheriff's and elections offices would not comment.