The Pledge of Allegiance Lawsuit #1 (2000) |
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On March 8, 2000, Rev. Dr. Michael
Newdow filed suit to end the practice of public school teachers leading
students (including Newdow's daughter) in claiming that the United States is
"one Nation under God" in the sole national Pledge of Allegiance every
school day. He lost in the District Court, but won a victory on June 26,
2002, when the United Ninth States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
ruled that the Pledge violated the Establishment Clause of the First
Amendment. The case was eventually appealed to the Supreme Court, which held
oral argument in the case in March 2004. On Flag Day, June 14, 2004, the
Court ruled that - for "prudential" reasons - Newdow would have to bring his
claim in state court (in California), because there were family law
concerns, and the federal courts shouldn't involve themselves in family law
matters. Thus, the decision of Ninth Circuit was reversed on standing
grounds.
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The Bush Inaugural Prayer Lawsuit #1 (2001) |
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On January 20, 2001 - at President Bush's first inauguration - two
Christian ministers gave overtly Christian prayers. This is hardly
consistent with the Supreme Court's statement that "the religious
liberty protected by the Constitution is abridged when the State
affirmatively sponsors the particular religious practice of prayer." On
February 1, 2001, a lawsuit was filed to enjoin this practice. After the
Defendants argued that Newdow shouldn't be granted standing because he
only watched the inauguration on television in California, the lower
court ruled that the practice did not violate the Constitution.
Newdow appealed. In a very sparsely worded opinion, the Ninth Circuit Court
of Appeals ruled that Newdow did not have standing because he did "not
allege a sufficiently concrete and specific injury." |
The Congressional Chaplain Lawsuit |
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In view of the Supreme Court's pronouncement that "the religious liberty protected by the Constitution is abridged when the State affirmatively sponsors the particular religious practice of prayer" - in addition to James Madison's unequivocal statement that the establishment of the chaplainship in Congress is "a palpable violation of equal rights, as well as of Constitutional principles" - Newdow filed a challenge to the use of taxpayer-funded congressional chaplains in August, 2002. The District Court for the District of Columbia deemed him to lack standing.
Newdow is now looking for a "proper" plaintiff, so that an end can be put to this clearly unconstitutional practice.
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The Bush Inaugural Prayer Lawsuit #2 (2005) |
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This was the second inaugural lawsuit.
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