Mount Soledad Decision Appealed; ACLJ to File Amicus Brief

As you recall, a U.S. District Court in San Diego recently held that the federal governments acquisition of the Mount Soledad Veterans Memorial in San Diego is constitutional. This was the latest decision in a drawn-out legal battle that started in the late 1980s.

 

The American Civil Liberties Union has appealed the decision to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, asking the court to hold that the Memorials commemorative cross is unconstitutional. We will file an amicus curiae brief with the court in support of the Memorial as we have done with several courts in the past.

 

We filed an amicus curiae brief with the district court in this case, representing more than 30 members of Congress. The focus of our argument was that Congress acted appropriately in paving the way for the federal government to take control of the Memorial from the City of San Diego. You can read our amicus brief here.

 

The district court repeatedly cited our brief. For example, the court noted that our brief raised concerns that an adverse decision in the case would imperil numerous publicly owned and controlled veterans memorials and cemeteries, creating a wide-ranging impact. This is a valid concern, the judge stated, bearing in mind the large number of crosses in military memorials.  But the court said it did not need to address this argument specifically since it found that the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial does not violate the Establishment Clause.

 

In addition, the court noted that the Congressmen represented in the ACLJs brief

 

take pains to separate themselves from individual legislators remarks Plaintiffs now suggest demonstrate the thinking of the entire Congress. For reasons outlined in the text, the Court must largely ignore the statements of individual legislators respecting their own motives for either supporting or opposing particular legislation.

 

You can read our summary of the district court opinion here.

 

Briefs in the appeals case will be due in December 2008 and January 2009. The case name on appeal is Jewish War Veterans of the United States of America, Inc. v. City of San Diego, No. 08-56415.