ACLU of Kentucky

District Court decision finding that Counties sought to promote religion will stand.

WASHINGTON, DC -Today the United States Supreme Court refused to again consider an  appeal by Pulaski and McCreary County officials seeking to overturn a ruling finding that the Counties posted Ten Commandments displays in their courthouses in order to promote religion. The decision marks the end to the Counties' final appeal in these cases, both of which span more than ten years and include a previous ACLU victory before the Supreme Court in 2005.

"We're pleased with today's decision because it represents a victory for everyone's religious freedom," said ACLU of Kentucky attorney William Sharp. "When politicians use government to promote a particular religion, they do a disservice to both institutions and exceed the limited authority granted them by the Constitution."

In 1999, the Counties posted stand-alone copies of the Ten Commandments in their respective courthouses. Following county officials' explicit recognition that they did so to promote religion, the ACLU of Kentucky filed suit. The Counties then modified their displays to include religious phrases from other selected documents in a transparent attempt to avoid liability. After the district court barred the Counties from displaying either their first or second displays, the Counties then erected a third version entitled the "Foundations of American Law and Government." U.S. District Court Judge Jennifer Coffman held that these displays, too, were likely unconstitutional because the Counties' past actions showed that their primary purpose was to promote religion, not history or education. The judge therefore enjoined these third displays and the Counties appealed. Both the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the preliminary injunction barring the displays.

After the Supreme Court's decision, the cases returned to district court where Judge Coffman concluded that the Counties had done nothing to establish a valid, non-religious reason for posting the displays and declared all of the Counties' Ten Commandments displays unconstitutional. The Counties again appealed, and the Sixth Circuit again found that the evidence showed that the Counties posted their displays primarily to advance a religious viewpoint. The Supreme Court's refusal to hear the case will allow that decision to stand.