OKLAHOMA CITY, July 27, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today,
Liberty Institute expressed its disappointment in the Oklahoma
Supreme Court's refusal to rehear the Oklahoma Ten Commandments
case.
Hiram Sasser, Deputy Chief
Counsel for Liberty Institute, said, "We are disappointed the
Oklahoma Supreme Court declined to follow the United States Supreme
Court, the United States Courts of Appeal for the Tenth, Ninth,
Eighth, and Fifth Circuits and the Colorado Supreme Court. Indeed,
Judge Alfred P. Murrah ruled in 1973
that an identical monument bearing the Ten Commandments was
perfectly constitutional where it stood in Salt Lake City.
The Oklahoma Supreme Court has taken the most radical position on
removing the Ten Commandments of any court in this Nation's
history. It is my hope the legislature and the governor take
appropriate actions to repeal this section of the Oklahoma
Constitution in hopes of restoring the appropriate legal analysis
forged by Judge Murrah decades ago."
Case Background
In 2009, the Oklahoma state legislature gave bipartisan
approval for a privately funded monument of the Ten Commandments on
the Oklahoma State Capitol grounds. In August 2013, the ACLU filed a state court lawsuit
seeking the removal of the Ten Commandments monument from the
Oklahoma state capitol grounds. In
October 2014, the judge ruled that
the Ten Commandments Monument is constitutional. The ACLU appealed
the ruling to the Oklahoma Supreme Court. On June 30, 2015, the Court reversed the trial
court's decision. Contrary to long-standing Oklahoma Supreme Court
precedent, which had previously permitted a 50-foot-tall lighted
cross on Oklahoma City public
property, the court held that the monument was unconstitutional and
must be removed. Immediately following the release of the opinion,
Oklahoma's Attorney General
Scott Pruitt filed a motion for
rehearing. Liberty Institute, along with Oklahoma's Attorney General, represents the
State of Oklahoma in the case.
Liberty Institute does not communicate on behalf of the
State of Oklahoma.
About Liberty Institute
Liberty Institute is a
national nonprofit legal group dedicated to defending and restoring
religious liberty across America — in our schools, for our churches
and throughout the public arena. Liberty's vision is to reestablish
religious liberty in accordance with the principles of our nation's
Founders. For information, visit www.LibertyInstitute.org.
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SOURCE Liberty Institute