Ten Commandments lawsuit in Jackson County could be resolved

By Dori Hjalmarson - dhjalmarson@herald-leader.com

A federal lawsuit over Ten Commandments displays in the Jackson County Courthouse could be resolved for about $6,000 if a judge accepts a proposed settlement filed Tuesday by the fiscal court and the American Civil Liberties Union.

In a U.S. District Court filing, the fiscal court, the judge-executive, resident Eugene Phillips and the ACLU agreed to a judgment of $5,912 in attorney fees and court costs, and a permanent injunction against similar displays.

In order to avoid a costly court battle, Judge-Executive William O. Smith had nine framed displays of the commandments removed last week from hallways, entrances and various offices in the courthouse. The displays had been there since 1999, until Phillips, who moved to McKee two years ago, sued the county for violation of the First Amendment's rule against government-sponsored religion.

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The Ten Commandments will remain on display in the Grayson County courthouse.
The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday denied a request by the American Civil Liberties Union to rehear the case.
The U.S. Sixth Circuit ruled in January that the Grayson County display of the Ten Commandments did not violate the U.S. Constitution because it was part of a display of historical documents, including the Magna Carta, the Mayflower Compact and the Bill of Rights.
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Motive matters, but only if you're up front about it.
Hang a stand-alone copy of the Ten Commandments in a public building while telling the world you're doing it in furtherance of your religious beliefs, and you've established a motive you can't hide no matter how many other "historic" documents you later add to the display or how many times you try to take back your words.
That's why displays featuring the Ten Commandments in the courthouses of McCreary and Pulaski counties keep running afoul of the law, even though similar displays in other Kentucky courthouses have been upheld as constitutional.
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Judges held a brief hearing to help determine a date for the start of the trial. The prosecution recommended a date in October or November, while the defense said it would leave the date to the judges' discretion. Bemba has been in custody for more than two years.

A similar case in Pulaski and McCreary counties, a 10-year fight that is still under appeal, has cost the counties more than $400,000 in fees and court costs.