Another Major Ten Commandments Victory

By 

Jay Sekulow

|
June 25, 2011

2 min read

10 Commandments

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I am happy to report that this morning we received an order from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit in our case, American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky v. Mercer County.  Mercer County had a Ten Commandments display that was challenged by the American Civil Liberties Union.  We were successful at the U.S. Court of Appeals in declaring the display constitutional.  This was the first major decision that came on the heels of the Supreme Courts two Ten Commandments cases last year.  Obviously, we were pleased with the courts ruling.  You may recall that in the opinion, the three-judge panel called the ACLUs arguments regarding church-state separation tiresome.  Not surprisingly, the ACLU filed a petition for rehearing en banc. 

 

In their petition, the ACLU argued that the entire 6th Circuit should hear the case.  The initial decision was from a three-judge panel.  The ACLU requested that all fourteen 6th Circuit Court of Appeal judges hear the case.  In an order issued this morning, the full U.S. Court of Appeals reviewed the petition and denied rehearing en banc.  In other words, the 6th Circuit once again allowed the opinion in our favor to stand.  There was a dissent by five justices in the case, urging the court to rehear the appeal.  However, a nine-judge majority rejected the ACLUs request. 

 

The next stop for this case may well be the Supreme Court of the United States.  I would not be surprised if the ACLU takes this appeal to the United States Supreme Court.  Of course, as always, the American Center for Law and Justice will be prepared to defend Mercer County before the highest court in the land.