
Supreme Court & Other Judicial Rulings & News 
"Of Clerks and Perks: Why Supreme Court Justices Have More Free Time Than Ever--and Why It Should Be Taken Away" How Appealing, 6.7.2006 Protecting the Republic from Federal Judges Magic City Morning Star, Tom DeWeese, 6.6.2006 New Book Explores First Amendment History First Amendment Ctr., Ronald K.L. Collins, 6.7.2006 U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Atheist's Claim Over Boy Scouts AP on Fox News, 5.30.2006 U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit holds that PROTECT Act's pandering provision is both substantially overbroad and vague, and therefore facially unconstitutional: In today's decision, the Eleventh Circuit has declared unconstitutional a provision that prohibits the promotion of child pornography. WO Comment: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit believes that promoting child pornography is legal and thus, by implication, acceptable to society. Legislators fail to protect our children. The courts fail to protect society. What recourse then is left to parents and concerned citizens? Judicial Appointments--Commentary: Poor Judgment? The president promised us judicial nominees who understand their role is to interpret law, not make it. Recent developments indicate he -- and Senate conservatives -- might be growing less committed. Bowing to Precedent: A Decent Respect for the Constitution Should Cause the Supreme Court to Reconsider Some Past Decisions Weekly Standard, Robert F. Nagel, 4.17.2006 The simple fact is that constitutional law as set out in the cases now requires judges to legislate from the bench. Nominees to the Court can repeat endlessly that judges should interpret, not make, law. But unless they are willing, once on the Court, to rethink the logic of prior cases, they will have to make law . . . The doctrine that Roe is a super-precedent makes completely clear--as do scores of decisions that rest on precedent rather than on the Constitution itself--that the justices (and their apologists) now believe that the authority of the Court's decisions is more important than the authority of our fundamental law. Can a Prison Constitutionally Deprive Ill-behaved Prisoners of Access to Newspapers, Magazines, and Photographs? The Supreme Court Will Soon Decide Findlaw Commentary, Julie Hilden, 4.11.2006 The Basic Structure of Constitutional Interpretation and the Limits of Interpretive Theory Balkinization Blog, 4.12.2006 Connecticut: "Gay Students Protest Scalia Speech" 365Gay.com, 4.12.2006 Don’t Impose Foreign Law on Americans American Enterprise, Justice Antonin Scalia, 4.12.2006 Should the U.S. Supreme Court Cite Foreign Precedents? George Mason HNN, William J. Flynn, 4.10.2006 Can We Talk? Decoding the Blabbering Supremes Slate, Dahlia Lathwick, 4.8.2006 Censorship of Child's Poster Depicting Christ Could Require SCOTUS Resolution The U.S. Supreme Court may hear a case involving a school district's censorship of an art poster that a kindergartener drew for a school assignment -- a drawing that was partly suppressed by school officials because it contained the child's depiction of Jesus. Read More Constitutional Lawyer Hopes Congress Bars SCOTUS From Citing Foreign Law An attorney with the American Family Association says he is disturbed over one Supreme Court Justice's recent comments regarding those who want to prohibit the citation of foreign law in the high court's constitutional rulings. U.S. Supreme Court May Hear Liberty Counsel Case Regarding Censorship Of A Kindergartner’s Art Poster That Contained A Picture Of Jesus Liberty Counsel, 3.24.2006 Florida Amendment Would Hold Activist Courts in Check In an attempt to resurrect their state's school voucher program, Florida lawmakers are considering a proposed constitutional amendment that would limit when the state's courts can declare a law unconstitutional. >> Read full story The Supreme Court and Foreign Sources of Law: Two Hundred Years of Practice and the Juvenile Death Penalty Decision Calabresi, Steven G. and Dotson Zimdahl, Stephanie (April 2005). Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=700176 or DOI: 10.2139/ssrn.700176 Against Impeaching Justice Ginsburg Over the Use of Foreign Law Volokh Conspiracy, Jim Lindgren, 3.20.2006 Justice Ginsburg on Foreign Law and the U.S. Constitution Volokh Conspiracy, David Bernstein, 3.17.2006 Supreme Court Passes on Internet Obscenity Case AP on AccessNorthGa.com, Gina Holland, 3.20.2006 US Court OKs Computer Searches for Child Porn Reuters, 3.9.2006 Opinion linked on How Appealing WO Comment: Apparently not all courts make a mockery of justice, decency, and sanity with "judges gone wild." Every court needs to render reasonable and fair rulings like this to protect US women and children as well as society in general. A person's right to a safe and secure life supersedes a so-called "right" to privacy. Anything held in private that inflicts or intends to inflict harm on an individual should be exempt from legal protection. Nation’s Highest Court Advances First Amendment Principles on University Campuses ADF, 3.7.2006 Pro-Family Groups Celebrate SCOTUS Victory, Pro-Life Protesters' Vindication The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that federal extortion and racketeering laws cannot be used to ban pro-life demonstrations in front of abortion clinics. Pro-life groups are celebrating the high court's decision declaring that peaceful demonstrators for their cause cannot be prosecuted under RICO statutes designed to fight organized crime. Read More Virginia: Judge Backs York School Over Teacher's Christian Postings AP on Virginian-Pilot, Zinie Chen Sampson, 2.27.2006 Lee v. York Co. School Div. District, No. 4:05cv125 (E.D. Va. Feb. 23, 2006) Ala. AG Victorious Again: District Court Upholds State Prohibition on Distribution of Sexual Devices Williams v. King, No. CV-98-S-1938-NE (N.D. Ala. Feb. 28, 2006) Ginsberg Dozes During Political Boundaries Arguments AP on Yahoo, Gina Holland, 3.1.2006 Snorer in the Court? Ruth Bader Ginsburg Snoozes WorldNetDaily, 3.3.2006 
The Injustice Files
 Amber Alert
Moussaoui Foreman Says Only One Juror Rejected Death Penalty (12 May 2006) The Washington Post reports, "Only one juror stood between the death penalty and Zacarias Moussaoui and that juror frustrated his colleagues because he never explained his vote, according to the foreman of the jury that sentenced the al-Qaeda operative to life in prison last week." Court Tramples on Freedoms of Speech and Religious Expression  Liberty Counsel filed an amicus brief defending the 188 year tradition of opening prayer in the Indiana legislature. Last year a federal district court ordered that the prayer tradition cease, or that if it continued, it ordered the Indiana legislature to censor prayers of any sectarian content. The District Court ordered that “if the Speaker chooses to continue any form of legislative prayer, he shall advise persons offering such prayer (a) that it must be non-sectarian, must not be used to proselytize or advance any one faith or belief or to disparage any other faith or belief, and (b) that they should refrain from using Christ’s name or title or any other denominational appeal. To comply with this order, the legislature will have to review the content of any proposed prayers and then censor out anything deemed to be “sectarian” or any phrase promoting a “belief” or “any other “denominational appeal.” This would mean that the Lord’s Prayer would be neutered so that nothing is left because even the phrase “Our Father” or “Who art in heaven” could be deemed sectarian. The practice of the legislature has never been to censor prayer or to select speakers. Rather, the speakers are recommended by individual legislators who typically are people from the district. Some include clergy while some have included sports figures. If no speaker is available for a particular day, a volunteer from the legislature opens the session with an invocation. The brief points out that the district court’s opinion conflicts with four other federal courts of appeal, all of which have upheld legislative prayer. Deported after 18 years After 18 years in the United States, Fatima Raziuddin was deported to Pakistan for violating a student visa in 1989 by working at a fast-food restaurant. She can't apply to re-enter the country for 10 years. Her husband and two sons remain in Ohio. 100,000 March in Favor of Immigrant Rights WO Comment: Meanwhile millions of illegal immigrants, the majority Latinos, remain in the U.S. Many of them receive health care, education, welfare, and other benefits at taxpayers' expense and quite a few of them commit serious crimes. Adding insult to injury, some of them march, protest, and demand even more rights and benefits. Injustice? You decide. 
Friends Sentenced for Taped Sex Assault Three friends were each sentenced to six years in prison for the videotaped sexual assault of an unconscious teenage girl, (age 17 ? at time of assault). The victim, now 20, told the judge she had been violated "in every way possible....When did I become a piece of meat? How can anything human do the things that they did? They did things not even a savage animal would do." A jury convicted the three defendants last March of a total of 15 felony counts of sexual assault. They were acquitted on other charges, including rape. One of the defendants, Gregory Haidl, 20, who taped the July 2002 assault at his father's home, is the son of millionaire and former Orange County Assistant Sheriff Don Haidl. WO Comment: A six-year sentence means they will probably be free in a year or two. One of the men is the son of a millionaire and sheriff. That explains a lot. Justice? You decide. 

Judges Gone Wild
Hot Topics For a short track record of what liberal activist judges have forced on America in just two years, click here. Judge Orders San Diego Cross Removed: Gives City 90 Days in Case Brought by ACLU-Backed Atheist WorldNetDaily, 5.3.2006 SIGN THE PETITION to save the cross California Lawmaker Denounces Cross Removal: Introduces Bill to Fight ACLU, Curb Judicial Power WorldNetDaily, 5.9.2006 Patriot Post: Judicial Benchmarks... From the Leftjudiciary, U.S. District Judge Gordon Thompson issued his edict Wednesday that the City of San Diego must cut down the Mt. Soledad War Memorial Cross, and in his imperious ruling handed down a deadline (90 days for destroying the Cross) and a threat ($5,000 per day in fines if the Cross is not destroyed, or a similar settlement reached with the atheist plaintiff). A cross has stood on the site for decades as a veterans' memorial, honoring their sacrifice and displaying the religious freedom our nation's veterans fight to preserve. This is a clear instance of Leftjudicial dictatorship—the people of San Diego have voted several times to transfer the Cross as a war monument together with surrounding memorial plaques into private hands, and Judge Thompson (and other judicial despots involved in the matter) have refused to back down. Moreover, in the last go-round over maintaining the War Memorial intact, Congress on 20 November 2004 passed HR 4818, which was then signed into law by President Bush, authorizing the federal government to acquire the entire war memorial should the City of San Diego deed over the property. Last July, San Diego voters overwhelmingly approved this transfer by a 76 percent majority, but a Superior Court judge (who, a week before the election, declared a need for a two-thirds majority vote) prevented its finalization in yet another stunning despotic refusal to obey voter-enacted law. San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders has indicated he'll represent the will of the voters—and the rule of the voters' law—by pursuing appeals. Patriot Post: "My sense now is that the judiciary is under assault in a way that I haven't seen before." —Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
"Former ACLU attorney and current Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg never fails to disappoint. Addressing an American Bar Association gathering this week, Ginsburg fretted over any oversight against conflicts of interest in the judiciary—likening to the Soviet Union calls for an inspector general looking into free trips for judges and financial contacts between judges and those appearing in their courtrooms. Moaned Ginsburg, "My sense now is that the judiciary is under assault in a way that I haven't seen before... It sounds to me very much like the Soviet Union was... That's a really scary idea." She's got that precisely backward—it's the U.S. Constitution and public that's under an assault from the Leftjudiciary that has never been seen before—and the people are simply responding to the judges' attacks on our system of republican self-government." 6th Circuit Favors Homosexuality Over Chaplain’s Rights Baptist Press, 5.3.2006 Activist Wants to See Judges Judged LA Times, Jessica Garrison, 4.24.2006 Judge Rules Against Campus Christian Legal Society Student group loses funding and platform to speak. Court Tells Christian Club Its Mission Not Harmed by Non-Believing Leaders An attorney with the American Family Association says a Christian club at a university in California likely will appeal a federal judge's ruling that a state law school can discriminate against the club. Read More WO Comment: The ruling doesn't meet World Observer's four-point criteria for the enlightened approach of the New Millennium Enlightenment--policy must be rational, logical, reasonable, and fair. It may be rational but the other three do not apply. A simple analogy would be for the court to be told that its mission would not be harmed by including law enforcement, judges, prosecutors, lawyers, and jurors who did not adhere to and uphold the Constitution, law, and punishment. 9th Circuit Hits Christians Again Infamous anti-Pledge court rules against a high school student's right to wear a T-shirt proclaiming the biblical view of homosexuality. Injudicious Intimidation: Objections Over Courts Cross Line from Healthy Criticism to Dangerous Threat Detroit Free Press, 4.16.2006 Recent Attacks on Independence of Judges Endanger Democracy Detroit Free Press, U.S. Appeals Judge Damon J. Keith, 4.16.2006 Protesting Perceived Judicial Excesses is Healthy for System of Government Detroit Free Press, Michigan Chief Justice Clifford W. Taylor, 4.16.2006 In the criticism leveled at the courts, are we really seeing not an attack on judicial independence but a debate about what judicial responsibility entails? . . . In the words of mid-20th Century U.S. Chief Justice Harlan Fiske Stone: "I have no patience with the complaint that criticism of judicial action involves any lack of respect for the courts. When the courts deal, as ours do, with great public questions, the only protection against unwise decisions, and even judicial usurpation, is careful scrutiny of their action and fearless comment upon it." How to Remove a Federal Judge Prakash, Saikrishna and Smith, Steven Douglas, Yale Law Journal, Vol. 116, 2006 Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=895607 California Court Overturns Sex Offender Registration for Oral Sex with a Minor -- 55 year-old with 16 year-old no longer a serious sex offense court claims LifeSiteNews.com Ginsburg Speaks at UNL Discusses Poltiicization of Courts and Judicial Activism JournalStar.com, Butch Mabin, 4.8.2006 Judge's Transcendental Meditation Sentence Crossed the Line, Attorney Says An attorney with the American Family Association says a circuit judge in St. Louis, Missouri, may have overstepped his authority when he sentenced a woman who plead guilty to voter fraud and drug possession to take part in a transcendental meditation program. Florida Amendment Would Hold Activist Courts in Check Agape Press, Jim Brown and Jodi Brown, 3.23.2006 by Thomas Sowell 03/21 Horrifying stories about the rapes and murders of children, and about judges who go easy on sex offenders who prey on the young, have prompted some state legislatures to tighten up the laws and restrict the sentencing discretion of judges. Berkeley Wins Boy Scouts-Marina Case AP, David Kravets, 3.9.2006 The court unanimously rejected claims by the Berkeley Sea Scouts that the city violated the group's free speech and freedom of association rights by charging it berthing fees, which nonprofit groups that comply with a 1997 non-discrimination law do not pay. The city revoked the group's subsidies in 1998 because the Boy Scouts bar atheist and gay members. It's one of several cases in which federal, state and local governments have distanced themselves from the Scouts. Opinion linked on How Appealing WO Comment: There are a number of reasons that this decision is an unreasonable and unfair miscarriage of justice and is, itself, discriminatory. From Constitutional Interpretation to Judicial Activism: The Transformation of Judicial Review in America Heritage Foundation, Christopher Wolfe, First Principles #2, 3.3.2006 by Phyllis Schlafly 02/20 One of the most outrageous examples of out-of-control judges is the case called Flores v. Arizona, now pending in federal court in Tucson. Originally filed in 1992, plaintiff lawyers claim to represent an estimated 160,000 children of illegal immigrants attending Arizona public schools. Vision America Petitions to Impeach Activist Judges Vision America has undertaken a project that has the potential of transforming the political debate in our country. This week we placed full-page ads in Human Events (America’s oldest conservative periodical) and the weekly edition of The Washington Times demanding an end to judicial tyranny. Click here to see a copy of the ad To highlight the problem, we asked readers to vote on which of 4 ultra-liberal, activist judges they would like to see impeached first. The nominees include judges who: - overruled Nebraska’s marriage amendment
- said parental rights end at the school house door
- prohibited students from saying the Pledge of Allegiance, and
- declared that presenting information on Creationism, alongside evolution, is unconstitutional.
As a follow-up, next week we are e-mailing to over 800,000 conservative activists across America. We will be discussing this campaign and urging them to go online to our website, http://www.stopactivistjudges.org/, to view the ad and vote themselves. Click here to take part in the impeachment vote 

ACLU Watch Stop the ACLU Coalition

"ACLU Applauds Senate for Rejecting Discriminatory Constitutional Amendment, Says House Must Also Reject President’s Anti-Gay Agenda" ACLU, 6.7.2006 Arrests at senator's book-signing prompt lawsuit ACLU accuses Delaware state trooper of violating rights of women attending event for Pennsylvania GOP Sen. Rick Santorum's book, It Takes a Family. 06.02.06 ACLU's Free-Speech Defense Depends on Who's Speaking Yahoo, John Leo, 5.30.2006 But the ACLU now has issue-oriented lobbies inside it. They are called "projects" and include the "Reproductive Freedom Project," the "Women's Rights Project" and the "Lesbian and Gay Rights Project." The influence of the projects, and the money they bring in, often tend to sway the ACLU away from its once primary concern about free speech. Silent Mourning: The ACLU vs. Religious Freedom Breakpoint, ADF President Alan Sears, 5.29.2006 Would ACLU Squelch Free Speech of Its Own Officials? The New York Times reports that the American Civil Liberties Union is weighing new standards that would discourage its board members from publicly criticizing the organization's policies and internal administration. 
PETITION TO EXPOSE AND DE-FUND THE ACLU What’s really behind the ACLU’s drive to strip the Ten Commandments from our courthouses, nativity scenes from our towns, crosses from memorial sites, and “under God” from the Pledge of Allegiance? One thing … money. The ACLU receives millions of dollars in court awards when they seek to remove symbols of the Christian faith from society! Read the Special Report on how the ACLU is getting rich off Christians! Legislation was introduced by U.S. Rep. John Hostettler (R-IN) which seeks to prevent secular organizations (namely the ACLU) from collecting attorney fees after suing communities to remove religious symbols. Click here to read more about the Public Expression of Religion Act of 2005 (HR 2679).

Kentucky: ACLU Sues to Halt Graduation Prayer AP on Lexington Herald-Leader, 5.17.2006 Muslim student, ACLU fight graduation prayer at KY school "Terms like Jesus Christ, heavenly father, and the prayers were offensive to me," the 17-year-old Muslim, Arshiya Saiyed, said. Court Order Does Not Stop Students From Saying the Lord's Prayer and Thanking God at Graduation Ceremony 
Lawmaker sued over use of 'Jesus' Who says you can't pray in school? District gives in on prayer, ACLU sues anyway Praying school board likened to terrorists ACLU fights school board's prayers ACLU: Jail school officials for prayer ACLU: Punish officials for 'un-American' prayer Mexico, ACLU Preparing Lawsuit Against US Over Guard Deployment Reality Check, Jim Kouri, 5.17.2006 ACLU Says the War on Christianity is a Myth Citizen Link, 5.15.2006 ACLU Supports Abortion of Millions of Unborn Daily News Journal, Mildred M. Daniel, 5.12.2006 The ACLU: Demon or Deliverer? An Interview with Nadine Strossen Rutherford Institute, John Whitehead, 3.30.2006 (ADF) JW: Are you optimistic about the future of freedom? NS: Absolutely. Not only because the ACLU, our members and other civil liberties organizations, including The Rutherford Institute, are so vigorous. But we must be willing to defend even those organizations that are exercising their free speech rights to engage in defamation against the ACLU, such as the Alliance Defense Fund. Book: ACLU vs America Judge Orders San Diego Cross Removed: Gives City 90 Days in Case Brought by ACLU-Backed Atheist WorldNetDaily, 5.3.2006 ACLU Litigation to Remove San Diego Cross 05.05.06 ACLU Goes Back to Court Over Ten Commandments Monument at Capitol WKYT.com, 5.4.2006 ACLU Policy To Legalize Child Porn Distribution Stop the ACLU, 4.26.2006 The ACLU Vs. America: ADF President Alan Sears on Faith and Family Broadcast Faith and Family, 4.24-25.2006 ACLU aiding illegal entry into U.S.? Judge orders San Diego cross removed - gives city 90 days in case brought by ACLU-backed atheist Read it on WND.com Ten Commandments Ruling Hailed as Evidence of Tide Turning Against ACLU -- Pro-family attorneys are hailing the decision of the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold a three-judge panel's prior ruling allowing the Ten Commandments to remain on display at Kentucky's Mercer County Courthouse. Read More Defining Moments in ACLU history Renew America, Nedd Kareiva, 4.23.2006 PA Taxpayers to Pay $1 Million to Plaintiffs' Attorneys Following ACLU Lawsuit Renew America, Steven Voigt, 4.20.2006 It's time for Congress to end 'fee-shifting provisions' in religion cases North Carolina ACLU to City Hall: Pray Neutrally Charlotte News Observer, Josh Shaffer, 4.20.2006 Alaska: "Don't Let Good Intentions Cloud Gay Marriage Issue" News-Miner.com, Jim Minnery, 4.16.2006 The American Civil Liberties Union is working to repeal all laws prohibiting or penalizing the practice of what some call "plural marriage." Polygamy advocates are following the same script of the gay rights movement . . . New ACLU Show on Court TV: "New Documentary About the Law Proves a Valuable Tool for Gay-Headed Families" Washington Blade, Brian Moylan, 4.12.2006 Leave it to the American Civil Liberties Union and Court TV to find the perfect balance. On Saturday, April 15, at noon, the cable channel debuts the latest in its monthly series "The ACLU Freedom Files" a documentary show that looks at different civil rights issues in America today. The third installment (of 10) is about "Gay & Lesbian Rights." Other episodes in the series include looks at voting rights, women’s rights, racial profiling, religious freedom and dissent. ACLJ Defending Faith-Based Initiative ACLJ, 4.12.2006 -- Faith-based groups are entitled to the same opportunity to obtain grants as any other group. Bradford County, Pennsylvania, has adopted a faith-based prison reform program as one alternative that prisoners might use for their rehabilitation. This program has had huge success throughout the country. However, Bradford County has been sued by the ACLU for alleged violations of the Establishment Clause. The ACLU has claimed that the faith-based program receiving federal money is a violation of the law under any circumstance. ACLU Have Second Thoughts On Censoring Free Speech Of Pro-Lifers? Stop the ACLU, 4.11.2006 ADF President Alans Sears on Radio to Discuss ACLU vs. America Hear Alan Sears discuss The ACLU vs. America on two editions of Dr. Bob Reccord's radio show Strength for Living. The shows will broadcast April 11-12 on more than 400 local stations and on Sirius Radio station 159, but is available on the show's archive page at the following link: http://www.strengthforliving.net/ The ACLU's anti-Religious Hypocrisy The American Thinker, 4.10.2006 Pittsburgh: ACLU On Campus Carnegie Pulse, 4.7.2006 North American Man/Boy Love Association (NAMBLA) incites members to "rape male children" and "serves as a conduit for an underground network of pedophiles in the U.S." The group was defended by the American Civil Liberties Union. Boy Scouts Back in Court: The ACLU is Seeking to Block the Military's Involvement with the Scouts. Citizen Link, 4.6.2006 ACLU vs. Boy Scouts WSLS, 4.7.2006 ACLU Fees are Wholly Unfair Daily Press, 4.7.2006 Did the ACLU Squeeze the Intelligent Design Decision out of Dover? Center for Science and Culture, 4.6.2006 The taxpayers in Dover Pennsylvania may have been fleeced by the ACLU and Americans United for Separation of Church and State (AUSCS) for a shocking $1 million dollar bill . . . it now appears that there was collusion between the ACLU, AUSCS, and Dover school board members. Rutherford Institute Secures Court Victory for New York Residents Whose ‘Jesus Saves/John 3:16’ Religious Bricks Were Removed from School Walkway Attorneys for The Rutherford Institute have secured a court victory for the right of Oswego County residents to inscribe Christian messages on bricks that were purchased and placed in the walkway of Mexico Academy High School as part of a school fundraiser. The ruling by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York orders school officials to restore to the school walkway the bricks inscribed with religious messages, which had been removed by school officials in an effort to appease the American Civil Liberties Union. The court’s order comes in response to a lawsuit filed by Institute attorneys alleging that the removal of the bricks violated the residents’ First Amendment right to free speech. Click here to read more. Abstinence Ed Group to ACLU: Produce Proof or Retract False Allegations An abstinence education group in Rhode Island is accusing the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of spreading half-truths and distortions. >> Read full story "ACLU Asks Federal Appeals Court to Delay Tennessee’s Production of Anti-Choice License Plate" 4.7.2006 ACLU 7th Circuit Suit Challenging Boy Scout Jamboree How Appealing, Howard Bashman, 4.6.2006 (links to briefs) The ACLU's War on the Boy Scouts WorldNetDaily, Hans Zeiger, 4.6.2006 ACLU - Free Speech for All but Pro-Lifers Stop the ACLU Coalition, 3.31.2006 ACLU Endorses Bill Limiting Pregnancy Center Rights; Even Some Abortion Doctors Question Use of RU 486 Baptist Press, Thomas Strode, 4.4.2006 ACLU Endorses Bill To Suppress Free Speech Of Pro-Life Pregnancy Centers Pro Life Blogs, 4.5.2006 Letter: End Taxpayer Payment of ACLU Attorney Fees Lahontan Valley News, 4.6.2006 Rhode Island: ACLU 'Falsely' Boots Out Abstinence Program: Accused of Spreading Distortions that Got Curriculum Barred by State WorldNetDaily, 4.6.2006 
ACLU President Nadine Strossen Speaks Out About Attacks Against the ACLU, Intelligent Design & War On Terror in OldSpeak Interview For Immediate Release: March 30, 2006 Press Contact: Nisha N. Mohammed Ph: (434) 978-3888, ext. 604 Pager: 800-946-4646, Pin #: 1478257 E-mail: Nisha@Rutherford.org CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Speaking with John W. Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute, in this exclusive OldSpeak interview, ACLU president Nadine Strossen responds to charges that the ACLU is the “group that the Right most loves to hate” and elaborates on the ACLU’s position on issues such as abortion, intelligent design, parents’ rights, same-sex marriage and the Bush Administration’s war on terror. OldSpeak is the online journal of The Rutherford Institute. The interview “The ACLU: Demon or Deliverer?” is available here.Whether protecting the right of Ku Klux Klan members and neo-Nazi groups to march in a parade or defending a Nevada brothel’s right to advertise its services in a city newspaper, over the course of its 80-plus-year history, the American Civil Liberties Union has taken on a panoply of controversial cases. Its involvement in such landmark Supreme Court cases as Brown v. Board of Education (1954), which banned school segregation, and Roe v. Wade (1973), which legalized abortion, have further added to its reputation as a group that does not shy away from a fight. Claiming to have more than 500,000 “card-carrying” members and supporters, the ACLU has declared itself the “nation’s guardian of liberty.” As such, the ACLU has been on the front lines in challenging government officials on civil liberties issues. Yet it is the ACLU’s self-appointed role of church-state watchdog that has made it the object of censure from groups to the right of the political spectrum. Soundly criticized for allowing its left-leaning ideology to influence how the group deals with religious freedom issues, the ACLU’s track record at times seems to support its critics’ charges that at least when it comes to issues involving Christian expression in public, free speech concerns often seem to go by the wayside.ACLU president Nadine Strossen became the group’s first woman president in 1991 and the youngest to hold that post. Since that time, she has championed many controversial causes, including the anti-censorship of pornography, which she expounds on in her book Defending Pornography: Free Speech, Sex, and the Fight for Women’s Rights.
House Sponsor Hopeful About Bill That Would Bar ACLU’s Rewards in Religion Lawsuits Christian Examiner, Tom Strode, 3.30.2006 ACLU Set to Appeal 'Choose Life' Tags: Proponents Say Plates Shouldn't Be Delayed Tennessean, Bonna de la Cruz, 3.30.2006 ACLU To Appeal Federal Appeals Court Ruling Upholding Tennessee Statute Allowing 'Choose Life' License Plates, Executive Director Says Kaiser DRHR, 3.31.2006 More Subpoenas in ACLU Suit Over Obscenity Law on Internet Porn NY Times, Saul Hansell, 5.31.2006 Rhode Island Boots Abstinence-Only Sex Ed from Classrooms Rhode Island has dumped a federal education program that encourages young people to abstain from sexual activity and other risky behaviors. The state's education officials are being accused of caving in to the demands of the ACLU. Battle Brews over Gay Paper in Ohio Library Walk into the Upper Arlington, Ohio, Public Library and you'll be confronted by a gay newspaper that routinely contains graphic sexual content. One library trustee wants the Outlook Weekly thrown out. Bryce Kurfees is concerned that young eyes could get more than they can handle from the Outlook. The American Civil Liberties Union is threatening a lawsuit if he does dispose of the papers. Alan Chambers, president of the ex-gay ministry Exodus International, said homosexuals use such periodicals mainly for one purpose: "They are a means for mostly homosexuals to hook up with other homosexuals or materials that promote pornography." The Intolerance of the ACLU Baptist Press, Alan Sears of ADF, 3.27.2006 Religious Conservatives Slam 'Gay Agenda,' ACLU Townhall, Randy Hall, 3.28.2006 (Mike Johnson of ADF) ADF Radio Clip: Say a Prayer - Go to Jail Alan Sears addresses a recent case in which the ACLU demanded jail time for school officials who allowed a prayer before a school baseball game. New Mexico: State, ACLU Settlement Will Cost $700,000 AP on FreeNewMexican.com, 3.23.2006 The money part of the settlement includes $220,000 for the six months that ACLU attorneys spent preparing their lawsuit and $400,000 for the attorneys to monitor CYFD's compliance over the next four years. WO Comment: That's nearly a million dollars for one case. The ACLU files hundreds of such frivolous lawsuits every year and they are paid for with our tax dollars. Is the ACLU in it for "civil liberties" or the money? Look at their lawsuits then . . . you decide. ACLU Backs Brothels in Lawsuit AP on Las Vegas Sun, 3.18.2006 "ACLU Hails Rhode Island Department of Education Efforts to Stop the Use of Harmful 'Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage' Curriculum in Public Schools" ACLU, 3.22.2006 WO Comment: Notice that this item is from the ACLU and that the title uses the verb "hails" and the adjective "harmful" referring to abstinence in sex ed. Research has shown that such abstinence programs in schools are the most effective in controlling teen pregnancy. Another organization might have written the headline, "Group Bemoans Efforts to Stop Effective 'Abstinence' Curriculum." The choice of a word or two can easily slant communication to suit one's own agenda. Florida ACLU Vows to Keep Close Eye on Restrictions at Ave Maria NaplesNews.com, Jenna Buzzacco, 3.19.2006 Tennessee High Court Takes Marriage Case: ACLU Continues Fight to Remove Proposed Amendment from Ballot Tennessean.com, Sheila Burke, 3.18.2006 (Byron Babione of ADF) ACLU Calls on U.N. Human Rights Committee to Hold U.S. Government Accountable 3.13.2006 WO Comment: The above press release from the ACLU should remove any doubt that the ACLU is anti-American and will go to any lengths to undermine American government and national security. Alabama: Parker Blames ACLU for Judicial Ethics Complaint; ACLU Denies It AP on Parker for Justice, Samira Jafari, 3.14.2006 Original Op Ed by Justice Parker Alliance Defense Fund Radio Clip: The Case of the Silenced Parents A school official tries to talk a parent out of opting their child out of a “harassment” education class for fear that the ACLU might sue the school. WO Comment: The ACLU's intimidation of lower courts, elected officials, school boards and others is a serious and intolerable situation involving the abuse of authority and a serious injustice to society. If you are aware of similar problems at your child's school, in local government, or other situations please let those involved know they need not fear the ACLU. Tell them to contact the Alliance Defense Fund, the Liberty Counsel, the Rutherford Institute and similar organizations. Also use the Write to Congress button to urge elected officials to curb the ACLU's intimidating tactics and frivolous lawsuits (costing an abundance of taxpayers' money).

Local ACLU Eyes Mr. Hetero Case Worcester Telegram, Milton J. Valencia, 3.11.2006 Three Words Worth Fighting For Rutherford Institute, John W. Whitehead, 3.13.2006 WO Comment: ACLU defends Wiccan prayer at council meetings but files lawsuit against Christian prayer. ACLU: Lethal Injection Violates 1st Amend. AP, David Kravets, 3.8.2006 ACLU Leader Discusses Religion at CU Ithaca Journal, Cara Hoffman, 3.10.2006 ACLU's 'Bible Crusade' Reaches Into Small-Town America A Christian attorney says the ACLU is resorting to "old tricks" by filing a federal lawsuit to stop The Gideons International from giving Bibles to fifth-graders at a public school in Missouri. Legion Campaign Backs Anti-ACLU Bill: Opposes Lawyers Taking Taxpayer Funds in Church-State Cases WorldNetDaily, 3.4.2006 ACLU Urges New York’s High Court to End Unfairness Against 'Gay' Couples in Marriage ACLU, 3.3.2006 Deltona Mayor Who Unsuccessfully Tried to Censor Religious Paintings Says the ACLU Shaped His Political Philosophy Liberty Counsel, 3.6.2006 Indian River School Board Refuses to Settle ACLU Lawsuit ACLU Seeks Same-Sex African-American Couples for Same Sex 'Marriage' Ad Campaign PrideSource, 3.2.2006 Missouri: ACLU Seeks to Prohibit Bible Distribution in Grade School AP on Joplin Globe, 3.1.2006 AgapePress News Briefs — March 1, 2006 ACLU sues to stop Bible giveaway in public school ... Michigan's pro-life 'birth definition' act still in appeal ... Abortion waiting period upheld by Missouri's high court ... 'Booth babes' reigned in by video game promoters ... So what's wrong with stable marriages and strong character? ACLU, People for the American Way Join Forces to Oppose Rutherford Institute Lawsuit Over City Council Member’s Right to Pray ‘in Jesus’ Name’ Rutherford Institute, 2.22.2006 ACLU and National Abortion Federation Call On U.S. Supreme Court to Hold Women’s Health Paramount as Court Agrees to Review Federal Abortion Ban Ruling ACLU, 2.21.2006 ACLU "Bullies" Boyd County, KY Stop the ACLU Coalition, Nedd Kareiva, 2.21.2006 GOPUSA: ACLU Panel Urges Impeachment Over NSA Spying While White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan was asserting Monday that the National Security Agency's domestic surveillance program was a vital tool in the war against terrorism, a panel assembled by the American Civil Liberties Union was arguing that President Bush should be impeached over the spying program. >> Read full story Hollywood And ACLU Vs. Catholicism The ACLU's "Holy" Alliance Renew America, Nedd Kareiva, 2.19.2006 The ADL/ACLU Anti-Prayer Axis Chron Watch, Don Feder, 2.19.2006 (Gary McCaleb of ADF) ACLU Hails Federal Court Ruling on School Trainings Aimed at Reducing Anti-Gay Harassment ACLU, 2.18.2006 (links to the ruling) NC High School Bible Classes Attract ACLU Attention NewsObserver.com, Sam Scott, 2.18.2006 The ACLU: Saving Children from the Bible in North Carolina WorldBlog, Greg Jones, 2.20.2006 WO Comment: Children need to be saved from the ACLU. ACLU takes on Boy Scouts in 9th Circuit - lesbians want group nixed from city-owned camp http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=48787 WO: Another example of the ACLU's efforts to unravel the social and moral fabric of the USA. Another fight involving misguided factions (ACLU/lesbians) against a traditional, legitimate organization. Read world history to find out what happens to nations without moral foundations. Read Alexander Hamilton to discover what he thinks happens to a republic when factions are granted too much credence and authority. Hint: They fall. If the ACLU and the faction in question would devote their knowledge and energies to the common good and public usefulness instead of unreasonable and unfair special interest agendas of search and destroy, the greater good would be served with positive, constructive efforts rather than negative, destructive activity. Be logical, rational, and fair. Let both groups use the camp. Better yet, let the Boy Scouts and lesbians use it together. "Can't we all just get along." Letter: Just who is the ACLU Protecting? The Town Crier, Ursula Lyons, 2.16.2006 Fear of ACLU Lawsuits Forces Scouts to Scrap Troop Charters Macomb Daily, Chad Halcom, 2.9.2006 Florida: ACLU Threatens to Sue Hillsborough Schools to Force 'Gay Straight Clubs' Tampabays10.com, 2.8.2006 ACLU: Not Looking Out for Your Interests Human Events, Nathan Tabor, 2.7.2006 "Constitution Explains Why ACLU Wins Cases" and the Founders were Deists News Sentinel, B. J. Paschal, 2.6.2006 The ACLU's Love Affair with Death Renew America, Nedd Kareiva, 2.2.2006 Book: ACLU vs America Conservatives Can Defend Liberty Without Help of ACLU Human Events, Gary Aldrich, 2.3.2006 Right's Push on Judges is Resumed: Conservative's Concerned About Feinstein's Influence Over 9th Circuit Nominees The Hill, Alexander Bolton, 2.14.2006 Scouts Anniversary Week & ACLU Attacks WorldNetDaily, Rees Lloyd, 2.9.2006 ACLU and National Abortion Federation Hail Two Appeals Court Rulings Holding Federal Abortion Ban Unconstitutional ACLU, 1.31.2006 Oregon: ACLU Decries Approval of Library Filters Oregonian, Holly Gilbert, 2.15.2006 Court TV and ACLU Raise Awareness of Civil Rights with New Series, The ACLU Freedom Files ACLU, 2.9.2006 CRAVE Calls for Hearings to Expose the ACLU Christian Newswire, 2.15.2006 
More ACLU: This Wednesday, February 8th, ADF senior legal counsel Mike Johnson will be arguing the case of Doe v. Tangipahoa Parish before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. This case involves a lawsuit filed by the Louisiana ACLU to silence so-called “sectarian” public prayer (and even call for jail for those involved!) at school board meetings. Mike will be defending the First Amendment freedom and historic tradition of school boards to open meetings in prayer. (Remember the ACLU is suing FOR Wiccan “prayer” in Virginia.) 
Alliance Defense Fund
Defending Our First Liberty Read ADF's Current Alliance Alerts Support ADF ADF Files Suit After North Carolina High School Suspends Student for Distributing Day of Truth Cards ADF, 5.4.2006 ADF attorneys to defend student’s constitutional right to express a different perspective on homosexual behavior ADF Attorney Mike Johnson: Public Prayer Must Be Encouraged, Defended Shreveport Times, 5.3.2006 ADF Files Friend-of-the-Court Brief for FRC in Marriage Cases Before N.Y. High Court ADF, 4.27.2006 "9th Circuit Holds High School Can Ban Anti-Gay Shirt: Judges Kozinski and Reinhardt Trade Barbs in Lengthy Opinions, Footnotes" The Recorder on Law.com, Justin Scheck, 4.24.2006 "This is a classic example of social engineering and manipulating the law," said Kevin Therion, a lawyer with the Alliance Defense Fund who argued the case for Harper. He also questions Reinhardt's presumption that gay students deserve the protections of an ethnic or religious group. "That's a large political hot potato," he said. "Whether sexual orientation is something you choose." ADF Defends Christian Students Against Discrimination at Pennsylvania High School ADF, 4.21.2006 Sorry, Your Viewpoint Is Excluded from First Amendment Protection: Critique of Poway T-Shirt Case Volokh Conspiracy, Eugene Volokh, 4.21.2006 This is a very bad ruling, I think. It's a dangerous retreat from our tradition that the First Amendment is viewpoint-neutral. It's an opening to a First Amendment limited by rights to be free from offensive viewpoints. It's a tool for suppression of one side of public debates (about same-sex marriage, about Islam, quite likely about illegal immigration, and more) while the other side remains constitutionally protected and even encouraged by the government. ADF to Appeal “Extremely Poor” 9th Circuit Ruling in Poway Student T-Shirt Case ADF, 4.20.2006 The Judge the Supreme Court Loves to Overturn: Judge Stephen Reinhardt was Notorious Long Before His 9th Circuit's Pledge of Allegiance Decision, Weekly Standard, Matt Rees, 5.5.1997 School Dispute Beyond Candy: Expression of Faith May Drive Lawsuit Charlotte News Observer, Martie Maguire, 4.22.2006 The packages of jelly beans came with printed messages explaining their many colors in terms of Christian symbolism: green because God made the grass green, white for peace, red for the blood of Christ. But when a Raleigh second-grader wasn't allowed to pass them out . . . lawyer from the Arizona-based Alliance Defense Fund responded with a letter demanding that the school allow Robert to pass out the candy. The school didn't relent, and ADF lawyers have threatened a lawsuit. It would be their fourth case in North Carolina, and they are considering three others. ADF: Court Properly Interpreted Establishment Clause ADF, 4.19.2006 Constitution: Dead or Alive Washington Times, Paul Greenberg, 2.27.2006 U.S. Supreme Court Justice Scalia on Outsourcing American Law How Appealing, Howard Bashman, 2.21.2006 (links to C-Span coverage and a media report) Justice Scalia on the Role of Foreign Authority: An Abstract of His Speech Opinio Juris Blog, Roger Alford, 2.22.2006 "Supreme Chaos: The Politics of Judicial Confirmation and the Culture War." How Appealing, Howard Bashman, 2.16.2006 Supreme Court Justice Says Consequences Key to Constitutionality AP on Law.com, 2.9.2006 Indiana House Takes Stand on Prayer 83-0: Sends a Message to Judge who Banned Invoking 'Jesus' IndyStar.com, Michele McNeil, 2.14.2006 (The Resolution) The Indiana House sent a message Monday to the federal court judge who banned the word "Jesus" from official prayer by voting 83-0 to oppose the decision. Supreme Chaos: The Politics of Judicial Confirmation and the Culture War Heritage Foundation, 2.15.2006 Judge Grants Order Allowing Religious Valentines In School KWTX, 2.14.2006 (Kelly Shackelford of Liberty Legal Inst. and Mike Johnson of ADF) Florida Parental Notification Law Upheld Liberty Counsel, 2.14.2006 Scalia Dismisses 'Living Constitution' AP, Jonathan Ewing, 2.14.2006 Judges Endorsing Restrictions on Speech That Supposedly Offends International Law Norms Volokh Conspiracy, Eugene Volokh, 2.13.2006 Texas Court: Religious Symbols Must Be Allowed on St. Valentine's Day at Schools ADF, 2.13.2006 Originalism vs. Modernism Baptist Press, Kelly Boggs, 2.10.2006 Is the Supreme Court Really Supreme? Lincoln and Judicial Activism Breakpoint, 2.13.2006 Age, Tenure and Productivity of the U.S. Supreme Court: Are Term Limits Necessary? Teitelbaum, Joshua C., Florida State University Law Review, Forthcoming http://ssrn.com/abstract=881857 
The Rutherford Institute
Rutherford Attorneys Weigh in on ‘Nuremberg Files’ case, Ask U.S. Supreme Court to Affirm Right of Pro-Life Activists to Engage in Non-Violent Speech Rutherford Institute, 4.6.2006 
Liberty Counsel
Religious Freedom Christian Church Files Emergency Lawsuit to Stop the Ministry From Being Shut Down Liberty Counsel, 5.9.2006 Liberty Counsel Defends Christian Businessman Ordered to Duplicate Homosexual Videos U.S. Supreme Court Allows Decision To Stand That Says Public Schools May Not Censor Religious Viewpoints Of Students In Class Assignments Liberty Counsel, 4.24.2006 U.S. Supreme Court Allows Decision To Stand That Says Public Schools May Not Censor Religious Viewpoints Of Students In Class Assignments Washington, DC - Today, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed a ruling by a federal court of appeals to stand that declared public schools cannot censor the religious viewpoints of students in class assignments. The case, Baldwinsville School District v. Peck, involved a school district's censorship of a kindergartner's art poster that contained a picture of Jesus. Liberty Counsel represents Antonio Peck, the student whose poster was censored. |
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Ten Commandments Victory Upheld Today By Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals Cincinnati, OH - Today, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals handed the ACLU another defeat regarding a Kentucky display of the Ten Commandments, voting 19-5 to uphold the Foundations of American Law and Government display. The case is ACLU of Kentucky v. Mercer County, Kentucky. Liberty Counsel represents Mercer County. This display is identical to the one Liberty Counsel defended at the Supreme Court last year in two other Kentucky counties, McCreary and Pulaski. The litigation in those two cases continues and may end up again at the High Court. The Sixth Circuit rejected the ACLU's "repeated reference to 'the separation of church and state.' This extra-constitutional construct has grown tiresome. The First Amendment does not demand a wall of separation between church and state." Read the Opinion (PDF file) WO Comment: The ACLU files these ludicrous lawsuits, the same one over and over again in one locality or county after another and each time taxpayers bear the burden of the ACLU's legal fees. Liberty Counsel Files Federal Lawsuit to Stop Deltona's Censorship of Religious Art Orlando, FL - Today, Lloyd Marcus, the artist whose paintings were censored from a Black History Month display, filed a lawsuit in federal district court against the City of Deltona, Florida. The City failed to reverse its decision after Liberty Counsel sent a letter to Mayor Dennis Mulder and acting City Manager/City Attorney, L. Roland Blossom, demanding that the paintings be reposted in the lobby of City Hall. The City of Deltona has allowed City employees and local citizens to display artwork to celebrate Black History Month. Marcus, a Deltona resident and President of the Deltona Arts and Historical Center, is a well-known artist, entertainer and composer. His artwork, which was displayed temporarily in the lobby of City Hall, was censored by the City after Mr. Blossom ordered their removal due to their religious viewpoint. One picture displays a partially covered Bible and church sign. Another picture depicts a festive New Orleans funeral, and a third shows a Christmas basket. The paintings are a published series reflecting Marcus's childhood in his father's Baltimore church. Photographs of his paintings are online at www.LC.org. Although Marcus's paintings were censored, the City continues to display works of other local artists that do not contain religious viewpoints. These works include a charcoal sketch of three famous African-Americans and a pastel rendering of jazz artist B.B. King. Mathew D. Staver, President and General Counsel of Liberty Counsel, stated: "The City's act of censorship offends all those who cherish freedom of speech. Although Mr. Marcus has a long, cordial relationship with the City of Deltona, he decided to take on the City because he realized this issue transcends his personal interests and artwork. City officials should right their wrong, recognize their mistake and repost the paintings. Religious themes or imagery in artwork depicting black history are protected by the First Amendment. Indeed, religion is a vital part of black history." Following Lawsuit Deltona Reverses Decision - Paintings Will be Displayed Deltona, FL - Within hours after Lloyd Marcus filed a federal lawsuit in Orlando, Florida, against the City of Deltona, the acting City Manager/City Attorney, L. Roland Blossom, reversed his decision and will now allow the three paintings he censored because of their religious viewpoint. 
Liberty Counsel: Supreme Court Sides With Abortion Protestors Washington, D.C. – Today, the United States Supreme Court unanimously sided with abortion protestors and ended a 19-year legal battle waged against the protestors by the National Organization for Women (NOW). The case of Scheidler v. NOW was brought by NOW against several pro-life protestors, claiming that the protest activities of several pro-life individuals and groups were in violation of RICO and the Hobbs Act. In order for RICO to apply, there must first be a violation of one of the laws listed within RICO. One such law that abortion advocates have relied upon is the federal law known as the Hobbs Act. The Hobbs Act prohibits extortion, which is defined as the improper obtaining of property from another. Abortion advocates argued that pro-life protestors committed “extortion” by picketing their clinics. Today’s decision is the third decision by the United States Supreme Court in this case. In 1994, the Supreme Court sent the case back to the district court for further proceedings to determine whether RICO was violated by the protest activities. After a trial that awarded treble (triple) damages against the abortion protestors, the case made its way back to the Supreme Court in 2003. The Supreme Court’s decision focused on the fact that the protestors did not commit extortion because they did not seek to “obtain” property from the abortion clinics, as required by the definition of the term extortion. The Court sent the case back to the court of appeals, which determined that threats of physical violence could constitute a violation of the Hobbs Act, thus forming the basis for a RICO lawsuit against the protestors. RICO has been used to impose fines against some pro-life protestors in excess of $100,000,000. The Supreme Court decided today that physical violence or threats of physical violence unrelated to robbery or extortion fall outside the scope of the Hobbs Act, and thus the protestors’ actions could not be considered violations of the Hobbs Act, and therefore did not violate RICO. The Court ordered for judgment to be entered in favor of the abortion protestors. Mathew D. Staver, President and General Counsel of Liberty Counsel, commented: “RICO can no longer hang like Damocles’ sword over the head of pro-lifers. Abortion advocates were willing to sacrifice the First Amendment for everyone in order to advance their agenda. Today’s decision by the Supreme Court is a victory, not just for pro-lifers, but for all Americans who value their right to protest and speak out on issues important to them. This recent victory is another event that will fuel the engines of the pro-life movement to once again stand up for the unborn.” 
American Center for Law & Justice 
The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) is a leading national public interest law firm defending religious liberty. Led by Chief Counsel Jay Sekulow, the ACLJ specializes in constitutional law and is based in Washington, D.C. ACLU Litigation to Remove San Diego Cross 05.05.06 SIGN THE PETITION to save the cross ACLJ Wins Second Victory in Kentucky Case ''It's very clear that the full appeals court believes that its three-judge panel ruled correctly in upholding the constitutionality of this display,'' said Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the ACLJ. ''This is an important defeat for the ACLU and other groups that are committed to removing our religious heritage and traditions from the public square. If this case is appealed to the Supreme Court, we stand ready to defend the display and remain confident that the constitutionality of the display will prevail.'' 
Thomas More Law Center
Thomas More Law Center: “Judge’s Order To Remove The Mt. Soledad Cross Is Not The End Of the Story.” Thomas More Law Center, 5.8.2006 Sign the petition to save the Mt. Soledad Cross & Veterans' Memorial Federal Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act Defended In The United States Supreme Court ANN ARBOR, MI — The Thomas More Law Center, a national public interest law firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, has submitted a brief with the United States Supreme Court supporting the Federal Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003. Joining the Thomas More Law Center in the friend of the court brief are the Catholic League and the National Pro-Life Alliance. Thomas More Law Center Files Brief Asking Court to Dismiss Case Challenging National Motto ANN ARBOR, MI – A California federal district court is scheduled to hear oral arguments on May 19, 2006, in a case challenging the constitutionality of our national motto “In God We Trust.” Michael Newdow, the well-known atheist who almost succeeded in having the Pledge of Allegiance recited by California school children declared unconstitutional, filed the 162-page complaint against the President and Congress.
The Thomas More Law Center, a national public interest law firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, has filed a friend of the court brief in the federal district court in Sacramento, California, supporting the United States government’s motion to dismiss Newdow’s current lawsuit. Two years ago, the Law Center had also filed a friend of the court brief in the United States Supreme Court successfully urging the Court to reverse a decision of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which held the Pledge unconstitutional.
In support of the National Motto, the Law Center’s brief argues that “This nation and its form of government were founded upon an essential idea: individuals have God-given rights that the government may neither bestow nor deny.”
According to Richard Thompson, Chief Counsel of the Law Center, “Newdow’s attempt to eliminate the mere acknowledgement of our religious heritage by our National Motto has no basis in constitutional law. Even the Supreme Court, in past decisions, has understood there is an unbroken history of official invocations of Divine guidance beginning with our Founding Fathers and continuing to our present day leaders.” 
More Judicial/Legal News & Analysis ACS v. Federalists The Nation on Yahoo, Abner Mikva, 4.3.2006 American Constitution Society for Law and Policy (ACS) employs many of the undeniably successful techniques perfected by the Federalist Society, but in pursuit of liberal ends. FARC Indictment Could Backfire, Says Policy Expert The U.S. Justice Department's indictment of 50 individuals allegedly tied to Colombia's largest narco-trafficking group could backfire, according to a policy expert from American University, by increasing the chances that Colombia's current president -- an American ally -- will lose his re-election bid. >> Read full story The Virtue of Justice CERC, Doug McManaman, 3.2006 Senatorial Privilege vs. Quality Judges. Weekly Standard, Ed Whelan, 3.27.2006 Public Comments by Justices Veer Toward the Political NY Times, Adam Liptak, 3.19.2006 Judges Judging Judges, Quite Judiciously The American Spectator, Quin Hillyer, 3.15.2006 In Praise Of Judicial Modesty National Journal, Stuart Taylor, 3.20.2006 On Privacy Claremont Institute, Hadley Arkes, 3.13.2006 At some point it would indeed be important to overrule Roe precisely because of the corrupting effect that it has as it touches all parts of our law, and creates, for example, the notable exception to the First Amendment carved out for pro-life demonstrators . . . When it does that, it will have removed a political holding that has done more than anything in the last 30 years to disfigure our jurisprudence and poison our national politics. Equality California Unveils Most Comprehensive Legislative Slate Focused on Achieving the Homosexual Agenda 2.27.2006 "Cincinnati To Consider Gay Rights Ordinance" AP on 365Gay.com, 3.7.2006 Feinstein Blocks Nomination of Idaho Judge to 9th Circuit AP on San Francisco Chronicle, Kyle Arnold, 3.1.2006 WO Comment: If Feinstein is against him then he must be a great judge! Conference on Federalism and Sovereignty at St. John's Law School Opinio Juris Blog, 2.28.2006 Agape Press: Grandmother Gets Help Asserting Preschooler's Right to Share His Faith Thanks to the efforts of a persistent grandmother and advice from a pro-family legal group, a four-year-old student at a Head Start program in one Oregon city can now talk about his faith with classmates. An instructor had initially muzzled the youngster's religious speech at school. Read More With Court's Permission, Children Can Hand Out 'Religious' Valentines Today students in one Texas public school district are able to give their classmates Valentine's cards and gifts with religious messages -- the result of a district judge's ruling that protects the free-speech rights of students. Read More 
Law Reviews Listed by Alliance Defense Fund There are no links for the following items but many of them are very important. If interested, you can try finding the article or journal in a search engine. These are in print journals and may not be available on the internet. Zoned Out! Examining Campus Speech Zones Carol L. Zeiner, 66 La. L. Rev. 1 (2005) The Solomon Amendment is Constitutional and Does Not Violate Academic Freedom Gerald Walpin, 2 Seton Hall Circuit Review 1 (2005) The Jury is Out: The Urgent Need for a New Approach in Deciding When Religion-Based Peremptory Strikes Violate the First and Fourteenth Amendments Robert W. Gurry, 18 Regent U. L. Rev. 91 (2006) Permissive Discrimination and the Decline of Religion Clause Jurisprudence: The Wearing Out of the Joints Karl Schock, 77 U. Colo. L. Rev. 229 (2006)A Response to David Toy: "It's "Under God,' for God's Sake!" Michael Newdow, 35 J.L. & Educ. 53 (2006) Roe on the Rocks? The Implications of the Federal Partial Birth Abortion Ban on the Ever-Diminishing Right to Privacy Kimberly S. Keller, 26 Women's Rts. L. Rep. 1 (2005) "Please Disable the Entire Filter": Why Non-Removable Filters on Public Library Computers Violate the First Amendment Todd Anten, 11 Tex. J. on C.L. & C.R. 65 (2005) The Feminist Pervasion: How Gender-Based Scholarship Informs Law and Law Teaching 15 S. Cal. Rev. L. & Women's Stud. 3(2005) Same Sex Marriage: An Essential Step Toward Equality Erwin Chemerinsky, 34 Sw. U. L. Rev. 579 (2005) Death is Certain, Are Taxes? Another Argument for Equality for Same-Sex Couples Under the Code Jonathan Brophy, 34 Sw. U. L. Rev. 635 (2005) A Conservative View of the Originalist View of the Bill of Rights Boyd Kimball Dyer, 19-FEB Utah B.J. 36 (2006) The Dangers of Overreacting to "Judicial Activism" Thomas L. Murphy, 19-FEB Utah B.J. 38 (2006) Against Foreign Law Robert J. Delahunty and John Yoo, 29 Harv. J.L. & Pub. Pol'y 291 (2005) News for the Libertarians: The Moral Tradition Already Contains the Libertarian Premises Hadley Arkes, 29 Harv. J.L. & Pub. Pol'y 61 (2005) ****** Organizations/Web Sites Center for Law & PolicyThe American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) specializes in constitutional law and is based in Washington, D.C.Through its work in the courts and the legislative arena, the ACLJ is dedicated to protecting your religious and constitutional freedoms. In addition to providing its legal services at no cost to clients, the ACLJ focuses on the issues that matter most to you – national security, protecting America’s families, and protecting human life.




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