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Challenge To Illinois Moment of Silence Law Becomes Class Action

By Howard Friedman

Last November, an Illinois federal district court issued a preliminary injunction blocking a suburban Chicago school district from enforcing Illinois' new mandatory moment of silence law. (See prior posting.) Now according to yesterday's Chicago Tribune, federal district Judge Robert Gettleman has agreed that the suit may be converted into a class action against school districts around the state on behalf of students statewide. However the court still must determine the best way to notify school districts of the expansion of the lawsuit. Judge Gettleman, while expressing concern about the vagueness of the challenged law, has not yet decided the case on the merits. Nor has he so far extended his preliminary injunction to other school districts. The AP, also reporting on the case said that Judge Gettleman indicated he had hoped that the legislature would have acted by now to fix problems with the law.

Full post as published by Religion Clause on March 20, 2008 (boomark / email).