DETROIT (AP) – A Roman Catholic man who pleaded guilty to drug possession and chose treatment instead of prison says his religious freedoms were violated when a judge sent him to a Pentecostal-run program, then put him in jail when he quit.

Joseph Hanas says the staff told him his religion was “witchcraft” and took away his rosary beads, and he told the judge he wanted out – a decision he says landed him in jail.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan asked a federal judge Tuesday to overturn Hanas’ conviction, saying he had been punished for his religious beliefs. The ACLU says the case illustrates the pitfalls of government partnerships with faith-based programs.

Genesee County Circuit Judge Robert Ransom, who sent Hanas to the program and has since retired, said participation was voluntary.

But Michael J. Steinberg, the Michigan ACLU’s legal director, said, “It is a case that elected officials and all people in this country who are concerned about religious freedom should pay attention to before allowing religious entities to perform functions of the state.”

Hanas, now 23, came before Ransom on a charge of marijuana possession in February 2001.

He pleaded guilty and the judge referred him to a yearlong program at the Pentecostal-run Inner City Christian Outreach Center. Hanas’ lawyers say he was given no other treatment options.

The Rev. Dwight Rottiers, who runs Inner City in Flint, denied Hanas’ claims. After Hanas dropped out of Inner city, Ransom sentenced him to six months in jail because Hanas said he did not want to attend another religious program. The only free programs available were faith-based.

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On St. Nicholas Day, New York’s Greek Orthodox pray for their church lost at ground zero

NEW YORK (AP) – As Christians around the world celebrated St. Nicholas Day, the Greek Orthodox faithful headed for ground zero to pray for the St. Nicholas Church lost in the 2001 terrorist attack.

“This 36-foot tall church was just a stone’s throw away from the trade center. People tried to buy air rights over it, or to move it,” said Peter Drakoulias, a member of the almost century-old congregation. “But the church stayed. It was always the little church that could.”

The big question now is: Will the tiny house of worship that stood on 24-by-55 square feet of ground zero be part of the rebuilt World Trade Center site?

“We’re working closely with St. Nicholas, the Port Authority and other partners to find an agreeable location for a rebuilt church on the World Trade Center site,” John Gallagher, a spokesman for the Lower Manhattan Development Corp., said Tuesday.

A workshed stands where the church once served generations of Greek-American families. Built in 1916, the church was traditionally a refuge for Greek sailors arriving in New York harbor who believed that St. Nicholas, the patron saint of sailors, would keep their ships from sinking. Some of the world’s rich and famous also have prayed there, from shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis to actor Telly Savalas.

St. Nicholas – commonly known as Santa Claus – was born in the third century to a wealthy family in Patara, a village in what is now Turkey. He became a bishop and lavished his inheritance on the needy, especially children.

The Orthodox community worldwide already has pledged millions of dollars to fund the reconstruction. Tuesday’s outdoor service conducted was in remembrance of the more than 2,700 people who died on Sept. 11, 2001, in the twin towers of the World Trade Center.