Federal judge says Colorado city can keep Ten Commandments display

By The Associated Press

06.22.01

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DENVER — The American Civil Liberties Union has lost its bid to remove a Ten Commandments monument from Grand Junction City Hall.

U.S. District Judge Wiley Daniel refused the ACLU's request yesterday, saying he is bound by a 1972 ruling by the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which supported an identical monument in Salt Lake City.

In that case, the court found the monument was not an infringement on religious freedom because it was primarily secular and was not intended to influence religious beliefs.

City Councilman Reford Theobold said Grand Junction would immediately order granite to build five new monuments depicting important legal documents from British and U.S. history such as the Magna Carta.

City officials conceived the idea for the new $50,000 "Cornerstones of Law and Order" plaza after the ACLU threatened to sue the city over the Ten Commandments monument. There will also be a disclaimer that the city does not endorse any particular religion.

ACLU lawyer Mark Silverstein said the organization and five city residents it represents have not decided whether to appeal now or later. He said the case would eventually get to the appeals court.

"We're in this for the long haul," he said.

The ACLU argued that law on the issue has evolved since the 10th Circuit ruled in 1972.

The Fraternal Order of Eagles gave the Ten Commandments monument to Grand Junction in the 1950s. The group donated similar tablets to cities and counties across the country as part of a campaign to promote good behavior among youths.

One of the tablets stands near the state Capitol.

Debate over the Grand Junction monument has been fierce and in April voters ousted Mayor Gene Kinsey who wanted to move the monument to a church.

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ACLU sues Colorado town over Ten Commandments monument
Group says tablet outside Grand Junction City Hall promotes message that nonbelievers are outsiders.  04.18.01