Worshippers locked out of Bed-Stuy church

Members of a Bedford-Stuyvesant church worshipped in the streets Sunday after they say they have been locked out of their own building. Lavern Swaby-Miller says that her sister owned the building where

News 12 Staff

Jul 27, 2015, 3:00 AM

Updated 3,424 days ago

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Members of a Bedford-Stuyvesant church worshipped in the streets Sunday after they say they have been locked out of their own building.
Lavern Swaby-Miller says that her sister owned the building where the church is located, at 221 Ralph Ave. She was working to keep it out of foreclosure. Swaby-Miller's sister left her the property after she died. However, an eviction notice arrived from someone else claiming to be the owner.
"We went to court and the court said cease and desist, and on the 28th they came and they just shut the church down," she says. "They bolted the doors."
Swaby-Miller says the eviction notice came from 221 Ralph Realty. News 12 tried calling the number, but it was out of service.
The church says its next court date is Aug. 10. It says that after that date, a Brooklyn supreme court judge will decide whether or not they can move back into their church