Judge won't bar events at South Boston Lithuanian club as lawsuit against it proceeds

A judge has rejected a request by a couple living near the Lithuanian club on West Broadway that she immediately bar events there, saying they failed to prove they are being irreparably harmed by events there and that granting their request would instead harm the groups and families that have already contracted to host events there.

Adam and Shelby Burns, who live in a condo on E Street at Athens Street, behind the South Boston Lithuanian Citizens Association building on West Broadway, sued last week over what they said had become intolerable noise and other problems from events and patrons and sought a preliminary injunction that would bar the association from renting out its function space until the suit goes before a jury or is otherwise settled.

In her ruling, filed today, Suffolk Superior Court Judge Debra Squires-Lee said that while the couple can continue their suit and provide additional evidence of their claims, they did not provide the overwhelming facts needed for an immediate end to what they consider a legal "nuisance." Instead, she concluded that the Burnses made arguments that were balanced out by the lack of detailed evidence buttressing those claims.

She acknowledged the Burnses' complaints - and affidavits by two West Broadway residents - about excessive noise and litter during, but said their filings provided no evidence that noise levels actually exceeded city limits and that they did not provide any police reports on any illegal activity, including drug use, in the association parking lot.

Plus, she continued, the couple alleged the activities that have been making their life terrible have been going on since 2022.

That fact undercuts the assertion that Plaintiffs will be irreparably harmed in the absence of injunctive belief.

She concluded:

Finally, the interests of members of the public who have contracted with SBLCA for it to host these vents must be considered and I find the public would be negatively impacted. Weighing the balance of harms, together with the general ruel that a "preliminary injunction ordinarily is issued to preserve the status quo pending the outcome of litigation[,]" Doe v. Superintendent of Sch. of Weston, the Motion must be denied.