The presence of two Media Food Banks has triggered a lawsuit.

The First United Methodist Church of Media has run the Media Food Bank since the 1990s.

A few months ago, a second Media Food Bank opened, operated by a former church volunteer named Paul Mickle, writes Victor Fiorillo for Philadelphia Magazine.

Mickle started his own food bank after he was passed over by the church as director of operations and community engagement.

The lawsuit alleges that Mickle, as a church volunteer, used the church’s contacts to bring them over to his food bank.  

It also alleges that Mickle retained control of the church’s Media Food Bank Facebook page and refused to turn over the password.

A state judge has ordered Mickle to release the password.  Mickle’s attorney, Andre Richard Desir, said that may be a violation of federal law and he’s asked that the case be moved to federal court.

“The password is something he created and that is in his head,” Desir said. “And now you have a state actor trying to force him to reveal it,” Desir said.

The church’s attorney, Darryl Wayne Shorter, described Desir’s constitutional theories as “claims that are ridiculous on its face.”

Read more about the intricacies of this unique case in Philadelphia Magazine.