City locks minister up for his backyard Bible studies

Looks like ordained minister Michael Salman of Phoenix will have a lot of time to pray. The reverend has just started serving a 60-day jail sentence for — the horror! — hosting Bible studies in his garage. (He also got three years of probation and a massive fine.) Before his lock-up, Salman had accumulated a whopping 67 zoning violations for his thrice-weekly services. Although Salman received a permit to convert his large garage into a game room, when he started using it as a church, he violated local laws for everything from occupancy to a failure to have lighted exits. "We believe what they are doing is wrong," Salman said. "It's our home." Well, actually, it's a large building in your backyard. Tomato, tomahto.