Kentucky Ten Commandments displays can remain, for now

By The Associated Press

08.23.02

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LEXINGTON, Ky. — The Ten Commandments will remain on display in three counties pending further legal proceedings, a federal judge ruled yesterday.

The American Civil Liberties Union sued Mercer, Rowan and Garrard counties in November, claiming that courthouse postings of the commandments represent an unconstitutional endorsement of religion.

The group also asked for preliminary injunctions forcing the counties to remove the displays pending trial.

U.S. District Judge Karl Forester, however, denied injunctions in the Mercer and Rowan County cases and said he will rule later in the Garrard County case.

In Mercer County, the commandments are displayed with eight other historical documents, including the Mayflower Compact, the Magna Carta, the Bill of Rights and the Declaration of Independence.

David Friedman, counsel for the ACLU, argued that the suggestion that the commandments were fundamental in the development of this country's systems of law and government and should be linked with such political documents is a clear violation of the separation of church and state.

But Francis J. Manion, senior counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice, countered that the commandments simply are part of a historical display and do nothing to endorse religion.

"The Supreme Court of the United States itself displays Moses and the Ten Commandments," Manion said. "What does the Supreme Court mean to say by that — that this document had some bearing on our legal foundation.

"All this display shows or implies is that the Ten Commandments is one of many sources from where our systems of law and government evolved."

(The Supreme Court building's representation of the Ten Commandments is in the form of a frieze showing the giving of the laws to Moses. Commandments six through 10, written in Hebrew, are partially visible.)

Forester agreed that there was no evidence that the Mercer County display's purpose was to advance or endorse religion and denied the preliminary injunction.

"There is proof that the Ten Commandments have profoundly influenced the progression of Western civilization," he said. "History does recognize the secular significance of the commandments."

Forester then stayed the Rowan County case until the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rules on an appeal of an opinion that ordered a display taken down in McCreary County.

The circumstances of the Rowan and McCreary County cases are similar in that each started with a display of the Ten Commandments and then expanded the display to include other historical documents once legal action was taken against them.

"That should save the court a lot of time and both parties a lot of money," Forester said. "It also should avoid another round of appeals to the 6th Circuit."

In the Garrard County case, Forester listened to arguments and said he would issue a written opinion on the ACLU's request for a preliminary injunction.

In Garrard County, the commandments are posted at the courthouse surrounded by quotes and excerpts of several documents, all of which focus on or highlight God, religion and the Bible, Friedman said.

He also argued that the posting of the commandments in a county-owned hospital was unconstitutional.

"Putting religious documents in there with no surrounding secular documents no doubt encourages and even endorses religion," Friedman said.

Manion disagreed, saying that the display had been moved to a room in the hospital that was now being used as a chapel.

"I don't know how to argue against a statement that a government-owned hospital can have a chapel but can't have any religious symbols in it," he said.

All three cases were argued in front of about two dozen people, many of whom wore Ten Commandments T-shirts or lapel stickers proclaiming, "Ten Commandments Supporter."

"I'm real happy with what I heard here today, I just wish we moved closer to a conclusion," said Judy Tatum of Harrodsburg, who wore a shirt displaying all 10 commandments.

So far, the ACLU has sued seven Kentucky counties in two rounds of federal lawsuits. The counties posted the commandments in courthouses, schools and, in Garrard County, a county-owned hospital.

The ACLJ said it is representing government entities in eight cases involving challenges to displays including the commandments in Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana and Nebraska.

In an earlier ruling, a U.S. District Court judge ordered Ten Commandments displays taken down in the Pulaski and McCreary county courthouses and in Harlan County schools. The counties complied but are still seeking to repost the displays.

Updates

Kentucky federal judge tosses challenge to Ten Commandments display
Judge hands ACLU its first defeat in a string of lawsuits aimed at removing religious codes from state's government buildings.  01.24.03

Kentucky federal judge tosses challenge to Ten Commandments display
Judge hands ACLU its first defeat in a string of lawsuits aimed at removing religious codes from state's government buildings.  01.24.03

Previous

Ten Commandments displays prompt more lawsuits in Kentucky
ACLU takes four more local governments to court for posting religious codes in courthouses.  11.28.01

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