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Child Evangelism Fellowship Wins Preliminary Injunction

By Howard M. Friedman

In Child Evangelism Fellowship of Minnesota v. Elk River Area School District #728, (D MN, Feb. 6, 2009), a Minnesota federal district court granted a preliminary injunction barring implementation of Elk River (MN) School District's policy of allowing only organizations specifically categorized in federal law as "patriotic" to distribute literature at school Open Houses. The court held that the school district had created a limited public forum at its Open Houses, but that by relying on a viewpoint categorization created by Congress, the school district improperly discriminated against CEF's Good News Clubs. Alternatively the court held that even if the policy is viewpoint neutral, it is not reasonable in light of its purpose. Relying on the U.S. Supreme Court's 2001 decision in Good News Club v. Milford Central School, the court found that: "The Good News Club and the Boy Scouts promote the same values and ideas, but
they do so from different viewpoints." Liberty Counsel issued a press release welcoming the decision.

Full post as published by Religion Clause on February 11, 2009 (boomark / email).