A federal district judge has rebuffed an attempt by the American Civil Liberties Union to have a nativity scene removed from an Indiana courthouse lawn, criticizing the legal organization for filing a lawsuit during the holiday season and wanting a “hasty resolution.”
At issue is a court case that the ACLU brought a lawsuit against Fulton County, Ind., on behalf of a man, Roger LaMunion, who lives in the area and objects to the county’s annual nativity scene outside the courthouse. The ACLU charges the scene violates the First Amendment. The nativity depicts Mary, Joseph, the baby Jesus, wise men and shepherds.
U.S. District Judge Jon E. DeGuilio, in a Nov. 25 ruling, declined the ACLU request. An injunction, he ruled, is “not possible in the timeframe the plaintiff presented this motion.”
Liberty Counsel, which is representing Fulton County, applauded the decision. The nativity has been placed on the courthouse lawn annually since 1980, Liberty Counsel said.
“Fulton County was able to include the Nativity scene in this year’s holiday display as they have done for many years,” said Liberty Counsel Chairman Mat Staver. “Publicly sponsored Nativity scenes on public property are constitutional, especially when the display includes other secular symbols of the holiday. The Supreme Court and many federal courts have upheld Nativity displays. In fact, removing only the religious symbols of the holiday display would demonstrate hostility toward religion, which the First Amendment forbids.”