ArchivedACLU decides not to press suit over Chester County...www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=1015 ... 5812&rfi=6
ACLU decides not to press suit over Chester County Ten Commandments display
September 12, 2003
Two groups that had filed suit to force the removal of a Ten Commandments display from the Chester County Courthouse say they will not appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
That means the 83-year-old plaque will remain on display, as it has been since early July, when it was uncovered following a 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that the plaque had historical significance.
A federal judge had ruled in March 2002 that the display was unconstitutional.
The ACLU filed suit in October 2001 on behalf of the Freethought Society and Sally Flynn, a Pocopson Township resident who objected to the plaque's religious content.
"I'm sorry we lost but I feel optimistic that ultimately these religious plaques will come off our courthouses as our society becomes more and more diverse, because these plaques are very exclusionary," Flynn said Friday.
Stefan Presser, legal director of the ACLU's Philadelphia office, said the decision was made after a thorough analysis of the law as well as the makeup of the high court.
"At least three (Supreme Court) justices are on record in other cases as saying our position was in legal error," he told The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Presser said that reality substantially reduced the likelihood of a reversal.
Chester County Commissioner Karen L. Martynick said the commissioners were pleased to hear the news.
"I think the ACLU's decision not to seek the appeal speaks to the soundness of our argument and the soundness of the (court) decision. It's another step toward having this behind us," she told the Inquirer.
©NEPA News 2003
Well, well, well! Have my eyes deceived me, or did I just read that the ACLU members have been forced to back down? LOL
And clearly, this Flynn woman is blind to the fact that this society IS diverse. It's as diverse as it's going to get!
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