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Judge rules for cheerleaders in Bible banner suit
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Leroy N. Soetoro
May 11, 2013, 12:46:06 PM5/11/13
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http://www.seattlepi.com/news/texas/article/Judge-rules-for-cheerleaders-
in-Bible-banner-suit-4499569.php
HOUSTON (AP) — A judge ruled Wednesday that cheerleaders at a Southeast
Texas high school can display banners emblazoned with Bible verses at
football games.
But the ruling might not have settled the issue of whether the banners are
protected free speech, according to an attorney for the cheerleaders'
school district.
State District Judge Steven Thomas determined the Kountze High School
cheerleaders' banners are constitutionally permissible. In the ruling,
Thomas determined that no law "prohibits cheerleaders from using
religious-themed banners at school sporting events."
The Kountze school district had initially said the banners could not be
displayed after receiving a complaint about them in September from the
Freedom From Religion Foundation. The foundation argued the banners
violated the so-called First Amendment Establishment Clause that bars
government — or publicly funded school districts in this case — from
establishing or endorsing a religion.
Thomas ruled that the establishment clause does not prohibit the use of
such religious-themed banners at school sporting events.
"This is a great victory for the cheerleaders and now they're going to be
able to have their banners," said Hiram Sasser, a lead attorney for the
Liberty Institute, a Plano, Texas-based nonprofit law firm that
represented the cheerleaders.
But Thomas Brandt, the school district's attorney, argued that Judge
Thomas also granted a school district motion in his ruling that says the
district can permit the banners under the establishment clause but is not
required to do so. Brandt said the motion also says the banners are the
speech of the school, not private speech, so the school has a right to
have editorial control of the banners.
Initially, the school district ruled the banners could not be displayed.
But after a public meeting in February, the school board of trustees
issued a resolution in which it wrote that the district was not required
to prohibit messages on school banners that displayed "fleeting
expressions of community sentiment solely because the source or origin of
such messages is religious." But the trustees said the district retained
the right to restrict the content of school banners.
Brandt said while he has yet to talk to the school district about whether
or not it will appeal, it may seek some clarification from the judge on
his ruling.
But Sasser said there is no ambiguity in the ruling and that the banners
are the cheerleaders' protected private speech.
"We won and they didn't," he said, adding that he expects the school
district to appeal.
The dispute began during the last football season when the district barred
cheerleaders from using run-through banners that displayed religious
messages, such as "If God is for us, who can be against us."
In October, Thomas temporarily allowed the cheerleaders to continue
displaying the banners pending the lawsuit's outcome. Thomas at the time
said the school district's ban on the practice appeared to violate the
students' free speech rights. The Liberty Institute had argued the
banners' messages were not asking anyone to believe in Christianity or
accept the faith.
The cheerleaders in Kountze, located about 95 miles northeast of Houston,
were supported by various state officials, including Gov. Rick Perry and
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, who filed court papers seeking to
intervene on their behalf. A Facebook group created after the ban, Support
Kountze Kids Faith, has more than 45,000 members.
Abbott praised the court's ruling on Wednesday, calling it a "victory for
religious liberties."
Perry in a statement said the cheerleaders "showed great resolve and
maturity beyond their years in standing up for their beliefs and
constitutional rights."
The Freedom From Religion Foundation's co-president, Annie Laurie Gaylor,
was disappointed with the ruling, saying the banners "carry the appearance
of school endorsement and favoritism, turning Christians into insiders and
non-Christians and nonbelievers into outsiders."
The Anti-Defamation League also criticized the ruling, calling it
"misguided" and saying it "flies in the face of clear U.S. Supreme Court
and other rulings."
Attorneys for the Kountze school district, in initially advising the
superintendent to ban the religious statements on the cheerleaders'
banners, argued there have been several precedent-setting rulings by the
Supreme Court.
In one of the more well-known cases, the court ruled in 2000 that a
practice of allowing student-led prayer ahead of high school football
games in Texas' Santa Fe Independent School District violated the
Constitution. In 1992, the Supreme Court made a similar ruling in a Rhode
Island case that argued a rabbi's prayer at a middle school graduation
ceremony also violated the Constitution.
--
Barack Obama, reelected by the dumbest voters in the history of the United
States of America.
Eric Holder, racist black murdering United States Attorney General, still
has his job.
Nancy Pelosi, Democrat criminal, accessory before and after the fact to
improper vetting of Barry Soetoro aka Barack Hussein Obama, a confirmed
felon using SSAN 042-68-4425, belonging to a dead man.
Obama ignored the brutal killing of an American diplomat in Benghazi, then
relieved American military officers who attempted to prevent said murder
in order to cover up his own ineptness.
Obama continues his goal of disarming America while ObamaCare increases
insurance premiums 200% and leaves millions without health care.
Obama helped bankrupt Illinois. Democrat run Chicago closes 54 public
schools.
--- news://freenews.netfront.net/ - complaints: ne...@netfront.net ---
in-Bible-banner-suit-4499569.php
HOUSTON (AP) — A judge ruled Wednesday that cheerleaders at a Southeast
Texas high school can display banners emblazoned with Bible verses at
football games.
But the ruling might not have settled the issue of whether the banners are
protected free speech, according to an attorney for the cheerleaders'
school district.
State District Judge Steven Thomas determined the Kountze High School
cheerleaders' banners are constitutionally permissible. In the ruling,
Thomas determined that no law "prohibits cheerleaders from using
religious-themed banners at school sporting events."
The Kountze school district had initially said the banners could not be
displayed after receiving a complaint about them in September from the
Freedom From Religion Foundation. The foundation argued the banners
violated the so-called First Amendment Establishment Clause that bars
government — or publicly funded school districts in this case — from
establishing or endorsing a religion.
Thomas ruled that the establishment clause does not prohibit the use of
such religious-themed banners at school sporting events.
"This is a great victory for the cheerleaders and now they're going to be
able to have their banners," said Hiram Sasser, a lead attorney for the
Liberty Institute, a Plano, Texas-based nonprofit law firm that
represented the cheerleaders.
But Thomas Brandt, the school district's attorney, argued that Judge
Thomas also granted a school district motion in his ruling that says the
district can permit the banners under the establishment clause but is not
required to do so. Brandt said the motion also says the banners are the
speech of the school, not private speech, so the school has a right to
have editorial control of the banners.
Initially, the school district ruled the banners could not be displayed.
But after a public meeting in February, the school board of trustees
issued a resolution in which it wrote that the district was not required
to prohibit messages on school banners that displayed "fleeting
expressions of community sentiment solely because the source or origin of
such messages is religious." But the trustees said the district retained
the right to restrict the content of school banners.
Brandt said while he has yet to talk to the school district about whether
or not it will appeal, it may seek some clarification from the judge on
his ruling.
But Sasser said there is no ambiguity in the ruling and that the banners
are the cheerleaders' protected private speech.
"We won and they didn't," he said, adding that he expects the school
district to appeal.
The dispute began during the last football season when the district barred
cheerleaders from using run-through banners that displayed religious
messages, such as "If God is for us, who can be against us."
In October, Thomas temporarily allowed the cheerleaders to continue
displaying the banners pending the lawsuit's outcome. Thomas at the time
said the school district's ban on the practice appeared to violate the
students' free speech rights. The Liberty Institute had argued the
banners' messages were not asking anyone to believe in Christianity or
accept the faith.
The cheerleaders in Kountze, located about 95 miles northeast of Houston,
were supported by various state officials, including Gov. Rick Perry and
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, who filed court papers seeking to
intervene on their behalf. A Facebook group created after the ban, Support
Kountze Kids Faith, has more than 45,000 members.
Abbott praised the court's ruling on Wednesday, calling it a "victory for
religious liberties."
Perry in a statement said the cheerleaders "showed great resolve and
maturity beyond their years in standing up for their beliefs and
constitutional rights."
The Freedom From Religion Foundation's co-president, Annie Laurie Gaylor,
was disappointed with the ruling, saying the banners "carry the appearance
of school endorsement and favoritism, turning Christians into insiders and
non-Christians and nonbelievers into outsiders."
The Anti-Defamation League also criticized the ruling, calling it
"misguided" and saying it "flies in the face of clear U.S. Supreme Court
and other rulings."
Attorneys for the Kountze school district, in initially advising the
superintendent to ban the religious statements on the cheerleaders'
banners, argued there have been several precedent-setting rulings by the
Supreme Court.
In one of the more well-known cases, the court ruled in 2000 that a
practice of allowing student-led prayer ahead of high school football
games in Texas' Santa Fe Independent School District violated the
Constitution. In 1992, the Supreme Court made a similar ruling in a Rhode
Island case that argued a rabbi's prayer at a middle school graduation
ceremony also violated the Constitution.
--
Barack Obama, reelected by the dumbest voters in the history of the United
States of America.
Eric Holder, racist black murdering United States Attorney General, still
has his job.
Nancy Pelosi, Democrat criminal, accessory before and after the fact to
improper vetting of Barry Soetoro aka Barack Hussein Obama, a confirmed
felon using SSAN 042-68-4425, belonging to a dead man.
Obama ignored the brutal killing of an American diplomat in Benghazi, then
relieved American military officers who attempted to prevent said murder
in order to cover up his own ineptness.
Obama continues his goal of disarming America while ObamaCare increases
insurance premiums 200% and leaves millions without health care.
Obama helped bankrupt Illinois. Democrat run Chicago closes 54 public
schools.
--- news://freenews.netfront.net/ - complaints: ne...@netfront.net ---
Benghazi - A flavored coffee drink that no one cares about !
May 13, 2013, 9:32:46 AM5/13/13
to
On 5/11/2013 11:46 AM, Leroy N. Soetoro wrote:
> http://www.seattlepi.com/news/texas/article/Judge-rules-for-cheerleaders-
> in-Bible-banner-suit-4499569.php
>
> HOUSTON (AP) � A judge ruled Wednesday that cheerleaders at a Southeast
> http://www.seattlepi.com/news/texas/article/Judge-rules-for-cheerleaders-
> in-Bible-banner-suit-4499569.php
>
> Texas high school can display banners emblazoned with Bible verses at
> football games.
As long as another school can show quotes from Koran .. why not ...
> football games.
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