Court Dismisses Lawsuit Against Ten Commandments

Court Dismisses ACLU Challenge to Ten Commandments Monument
ICC Note: In a small victory for religious liberty in the United States a federal district court has dismissed a six year old case brought by the American Civil Liberties Union against the display of the Ten Commandments in front of a Florida courthouse. The ACLU and other groups have aggressively sought to remove any statement of faith from public property in the United States for many years.   
By Melanie Korb
2/14/2013 United States (CN) -A federal district court has finally dismissed the American Civil Liberties Union’s 6-year-old challenge against a Ten Commandments monument in Dixie County, Fla. As part of the court-ordered dismissal, the ACLU will now have to pay court costs caused by its failed lawsuit.
The controversy began in late 2006, when a private citizen was granted permission to place a privately owned, 6-ton monument of the Ten Commandments atop the Dixie County Courthouse steps, pursuant to a policy that allowed similar expression by all citizens.
The ACLU filed a lawsuit claiming that the monument was unconstitutional because it offended “John Doe,” an anonymous 75-year-old ACLU member from North Carolina. Liberty Counsel defended the county and challenged the ACLU’s standing to bring suit on behalf of a member who lives hundreds of miles away. Initially, however, the district court held that the ACLU had standing, and ordered the removal of the monument.
Liberty Counsel quickly appealed that decision to the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals. In August 2012, that court reversed, finding John Doe’s testimony and his asserted intention of someday buying property in Dixie County not credible. The appellate court remanded the case back to the district court to resolve various unexplained inconsistencies in John Doe’s testimony.
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