Ethics

Injunction Issued in Florida Establishment Clause Case

By Ed Brayton

A few months ago I wrote about a suit filed against the public schools in Santa Rosa County, Florida, accusing the school district of a whole series of practices that promoted religion. The school essentially admitted to the violations and the court has now issued a preliminary injunction (PDF) pending a consent decree in the case. A press release from the Florida ACLU says:

United States District Court Judge M. Casey Rodgers granted a preliminary injunction late Friday in the highly publicized American Civil Liberties Union case seeking to prevent Santa Rosa County School District officials from proselytizing and conducting other religious activities in public schools. The court's order requires school officials to discontinue myriad policies and practices that promote religion throughout district schools.

The decision follows the school district's admission to the court that it has violated students' constitutional rights by persistently and pervasively sponsoring prayer at school events, such as graduations, orchestrating religious baccalaureate services, and proselytizing students during class and extra-curricular activities. ACLU attorneys attempted to work with the school district for two years prior to filing litigation.

Full post as published by Dispatches from the Culture Wars on January 22, 2009 (boomark / email).