Darab v. United States
District of Columbia Court of Appeals
623 A.2d 127 (1993)
Relevant factsFree
The prior imam Asi and his followers (defendants) violently confronted the newly appointed imam during a worship service and refused instructions to leave the mosque despite warnings of arrest; convicted of unlawful entry, they argued on appeal they either did not hear the leave instructions or believed, based on a religious scholar's opinion that Muslims could not be excluded from a mosque, that they had a right to remain.
IssueFree
Whether a valid bona fide belief defense requires some reasonable basis or justification for the alleged belief.