A Ten Commandments sculpture is on display in front of city hall June 27, 2001 in Grand Junction, Colorado.(Michael Smith/Getty Images)
A law that requires Louisiana’s public K-12 schools, colleges and universities to display the Ten Commandments in every classroom takes effect Wednesday, and the state’s top lawyer said Monday she will soon provide guidance to aid with compliance.
Attorney General Liz Murrill will defend the new law the week of Jan. 20 before the U.S. Supreme Court when justices are scheduled to hear arguments in a lawsuit from nine Louisiana parents who believe the requirement violates the U.S. Constitution. Public school boards in five parishes – East Baton Rouge, Livingston, Orleans, St. Tammany and Vernon parishes – are co-defendants in the case.
A federal court injunction prevents the law from taking effect in those parishes while the court considers the lawsuit. The U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in November that the injunction doesn’t apply to schools systems not involved in the court case, meaning they are expected to follow the law.
“Accordingly, I look forward to working with the remainder of our schools as they come into compliance …” Murrill said in a statement Monday.
The new state law calls for 11-inch by 14-inch displays of the Ten Commandments to go up in every classroom. Murrill insists the commandments merit inclusion alongside other historical documents that form the basis of U.S. law.
Local school boards and the boards that govern Louisiana’s state colleges and universities are not required to spend money to obtain the displays. They “shall” accept donated posters or funds to cover their cost, according to the law.
“This week, I will publish guidance to schools on how to comply – in a constitutionally sound manner – with [the law], including specific displays that citizens may print and donate to their schools,” Murril said in her statement.
The attorney general said Louisiana classrooms are required to have the displays in place as students return from their winter break. She did not offer any details on if or how the law would be enforced, and the statute doesn’t include any penalties for schools that don’t comply.
Murrill and Gov. Jeff Landry, both Republicans, have long anticipated, if not welcomed a legal challenge to the law since the Louisiana Legislature approved it this spring. With conservative justices holding a 6-3 advantage on the Supreme Court, the attorney general and governor have expressed confidence that they will obtain a ruling in their favor.
Proponents of the law point to the high court’s ruling in Bremerton v. Kennedy, in which a high school football coach in the state of Washington challenged his termination for leading a post-game prayer. In a 6-3 decision, the prevailing justices ruled the coach’s First Amendment right to free speech was violated when he lost his job.
Plaintiffs in the Louisiana case, Roake v. Brumley, argue the requirement to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms violates the First Amendment provision that bars the establishment of a government-endorsed religion.
The American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for Separation of Church and State are representing the plaintiffs in the lawsuit.
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