Advertising

The Seattle Times Company

NWjobs | NWautos | NWhomes | NWsource | Free Classifieds | seattletimes.com

The Seattle Times

Local News


Our network sites seattletimes.com | Advanced

Originally published Friday, March 28, 2008 at 12:00 AM

E-mail article     Print view

Appeals court OKs 10 Commandments monolith in Everett

A Ten Commandments monument outside Everett's former City Hall does not violate the constitutional separation of church and state, the 9th...

Times Snohomish County Bureau

A Ten Commandments monument outside Everett's former City Hall does not violate the constitutional separation of church and state, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled.

The U.S. Supreme Court in June 2005 issued a pivotal pair of decisions on displays of the Ten Commandments on public property, decreeing that a monument on the Texas State Capitol grounds was constitutional and two displays in Kentucky courthouses were not.

Several months later the U.S. District Court upheld the legality of the Everett monolith, finding that its circumstances resembled the Texas case.

The appeals court on Wednesday agreed, upholding the ruling of District Court Judge Robert Lasnik. The opinion, written by Judge Kim McLane Wardlaw, notes the secular origins of the granite monolith, its nonsacred setting and a historic lack of community controversy.

The 6-foot-tall monument, near Wall Street and Wetmore Avenue outside the city's police department, was installed by the Fraternal Order of Eagles in 1959. The Eagles erected hundreds of the granite monuments across the country in the 1950s, inspired in part by Cecil B. DeMille's popular 1956 movie "The Ten Commandments."

An Everett resident, Jesse Card, filed the suit with free legal assistance from Americans United for Separation of Church and State. The recent appeal was handled by a team of lawyers from Seattle and Washington, D.C.

"We're disappointed in the ruling," said Ayesha Khan, legal director for the group. "I think the court failed to appreciate the distinction between a comprehensive display [in Texas] that highlights the Ten Commandments' secular aspect and a solitary display that broadcasts the Ten Commandments' religious aspects."

Everett spokeswoman Kate Reardon said the city always believed it had a strong case because of the "historical significance" of the Eagles' gift.

"It's nice to know that the higher court agrees," she said.

Seattle Times reporter Sonia Krishnan contributed to this report.

Diane Brooks: 425-745-7802 or dbrooks@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2008 The Seattle Times Company

More Local News headlines...

E-mail article Print view      Share:    Digg     Newsvine

advertising

UPDATE - 11:25 AM
Bombs, guns found at home of suspect in Officer Brenton's slaying

How an underdog named Mike McGinn took City Hall

Danny Westneat: Lee the Horse Logger found slow wagon shrank tumor

Parents want answers on new Seattle school boundaries

3 Cascade Mountain passes close due to snow; more rain, wind expected Sunday

Advertising

Video

Mourners gather at KeyArena for slain officer's memorial
Mourners gathered at KeyArena for the memorial service of Seattle police Officer Timothy Brenton on November 6, 2009.

Procession for slain SPD officer
Election Night: Approve R-71
Election Night: Reject R-71
Election Night: Joe Mallahan
Election Night: Mike McGinn
Election Night: Susan Hutchison
Election Night: Dow Constatine
Candlelight vigil for Officer Brenton
Flying Elephant on Aurora

Marketplace

nwautos

2009's most fuel-efficient sedansnew
Choosing a new sedan? Weigh the impact of your choice on your wallet and on the planet.
Post a comment

Open Houses

Find this weekend's open house listings.
Or search by location:

 
Most read
Most commented
Most e-mailed
 
 
Advertising