Religion & Law

Kansas House fails to override abortion veto by 2 votes

Posted on April 30, 2010
"The Kansas House failed to override Gov. Mark Parkinson's veto of a bill that would have rewritten the state's laws on late-term abortions, falling two votes short on Friday . . ."

Florida House Sends Bill for Pre-Abortion Ultrasound to Governor

Posted on April 30, 2010
". . . Speculation now is that Crist will veto the bill and return to his pro-abortion roots after trying to woo GOP voters in the primary bid . . . "

Religious Land Use Attorney Dan Dalton to Moderate and Present at ABA Conference on RLUIPA Law

Posted on April 30, 2010
Christian Newswire: "Attorney Daniel P. Dalton of Tomkiw Dalton, plc in Royal Oak, Mich. will be a featured speaker at the 2010 American Bar Association spring meeting, which will be held in Miami from April 29 to May 2. Dalton will share his expertise in the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) on Friday, April 30...

Texas? top criminal appeals judge fined $100,000

Posted on April 30, 2010
Star Telegram: "The Texas Ethics Commission has assessed a $100,000 civil penalty against the state's highest criminal appeals judge for failing to disclose more than $2.4 million in real estate holdings as well as income from various sources . . . "

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Jordan Lorence: What universities can learn from the Mojave Cross decision

Posted on April 30, 2010
ADF Attorney Jordan Lorence writing at speakupmovement.org/university: "But university officials should learn from this case that historically, the point of the Establishment Clause was to stop government coercion of its citizens to conform their thinking to the prevailing state orthodoxy...

Erik Stanley: Church bells ringing since 16th Century under attack

Posted on April 30, 2010
ADF Attorney Erik Stanley writing at speakupmovement.org/church: "The attack on St. Mary?s bells is the latest salvo in Europe?s battle against Christianity, and steady march toward secularism. European society increasingly sees religion as useless and a nuisance...

Michael Nazir-Ali: The legal threat to our spiritual tradition

Posted on April 30, 2010
Rt Rev Dr Michael Nazir-Ali. former Bishop of Rochester. writing in the Telegraph: "Lord Justice Laws's judgment on the Gary McFarlane case in the Court of Appeal ? that legislation for the protection of views held purely on religious ground cannot be justified ? has driven a coach and horses through the ancient association of the Christian faith with the constitutional and legal basis of British society...

Florida Republican retiring from Congress

Posted on April 30, 2010
AP: "Four-term Republican Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite of Florida is retiring from Congress, citing health concerns."

Obama Says Liberal Courts May Have Overreached

Posted on April 30, 2010
NY Times: "In a seeming rejection of liberal orthodoxy, President Obama has spoken disparagingly about liberal victories before the Supreme Court in the 1960s and 1970s ? suggesting that justices made the ?error? of overstepping their bounds and trampling on the role of elected officials...

No on 8 groups relent; turn over documents

Posted on April 30, 2010
Keen News Service: "No on 8 groups turned over CDs of 'highly confidential' material to attorneys for the Yes on 8 coalition this week, ending a months-long effort to fight a court order to do so . . . Equality California sent its materials April 27 to the Alliance Defense Fund, a conservative group that has helped the Yes on 8 group?s effort to defend California?s same-sex marriage ban...

Nurse forced to assist in abortion sues Mt. Sinai Hospital second time

Posted on April 30, 2010
Evangelical Examiner: "'An individual?s conscience is often what brings health care workers into the medical field,' said lead counsel Joseph Ruta, one of more than 1,600 attorneys in the ADF alliance. 'Denying or coercing their conscience will likely drive them right out...

Illinois: ?Bullying and gay rights?

Posted on April 30, 2010
The Capitol Fax Blog: "The problems of bullying at schools has attracted much attention over the past several years, and the General Assembly has just sent an anti-bullying bill to the governor. Schools will have to adopt anti-bullying policies. It was watered down from its original format, which also required education and record-keeping ...

Court ruling threatens National Day of Prayer

Posted on April 30, 2010
Wausau Daily Herald: "[Joel Oster], attorney for the Alliance Defense Fund, a defender of our religious freedoms, had this to say about Judge Crabb's ruling: 'The National Day of Prayer provides an opportunity for all Americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith and does not promote any particular religion or form of religious observance,'"

NY nurse forced to help with abortion files another suit against hospital

Posted on April 30, 2010
LifeSiteNews: "Alliance Defense Fund attorneys filed a lawsuit Friday against Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York state court, on behalf of a nurse forced to participate in a late-term abortion procedure under threat of disciplinary action, including possible termination and loss of her license ...

Stars and Stripes: Conservatives insist ?don?t ask, don?t tell? repeal will harm chaplains

Posted on April 30, 2010
Stars and Stripes: "At a press conference Wednesday, [Jordan Lorence], spokesman for the Alliance Defense Fund, said a repeal means that sermons against gay marriage or counseling advising against gay relationships could lead to demotions and dismissal for chaplains...

Court: NJ school wronged pro-life student

Posted on April 30, 2010
OneNewsNow: "'This is a great event [that] happens every year,' [David Cortman] explains. 'It's called the 'Pro-Life Day of Silent Solidarity' and it's organized by a group called Stand True -- and these students in their silence speak for the voices of the unborn, millions of whom have been killed by abortion since Roe v...

Reversal of anti-Christian policy applauded

Posted on April 30, 2010
OneNewsNow: "A pro-family group in Virginia is grateful to their new governor for taking a stand in defense of religious liberty rights -- and that as a result, police chaplains in the commonwealth can resume praying in the name of Jesus . . . Victoria Cobb says there are hints from the ACLU of a lawsuit, but she is convinced that Alliance Defense Fund, Liberty Counsel, and other constitutional law ministries can successfully defend the policy if need be...

Conservatives call out Michael Steele on his refusal to endorse ex-gays

Posted on April 30, 2010
Personal Liberty Digest: "Recently, some of those activists have taken Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairman Michael Steele to task for failing to meet with members of the ex-gay community . . . Meanwhile, in the sign that the fight over "don?t ask, don?t tell" is heating up, Family Research Council and the Alliance Defense Fund representatives held a news conference on April 28 to announce the release of a letter to President Obama and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, signed by more than 40 retired military chaplains...

?The Saudis argue about sexual equality: With the king?s permission, the debate is hotting up?

Posted on April 30, 2010
The Economist: " . . . a broader groundswell of debate that is beginning to erode the religious conservatives? long-uncontested control. Saudi Arabia?s beleaguered liberals had placed high hopes in King Abdullah, who succeeded to the throne in 2005 with a reputation for reformist tendencies...

U.S. Supreme Court?s cross ruling provides strong support for Utah roadside crosses

Posted on April 30, 2010
High court mentions roadside memorials as part of Mojave Cross ruling after ADF-allied attorney representing Utah Highway Patrol Association filed brief in case

Retired chaplains oppose ?Don?t Ask/Don?t Tell? repeal

Posted on April 30, 2010
BeliefNet (RNS): "The letter was spearheaded by the Family Research Council and the Alliance Defense Fund. ADF lawyers sent a letter with similar concerns to Obama and Gates in February."

Wendy Kaminer: National Prayer Day

Posted on April 30, 2010
Wendy Kaminer writing in The Atlantic: "Judge Crabb cited numerous complaints from members of minority faiths about the 'hi-jacking' of Prayer Day by conservative Christians. Joel Oster, Senior Legal Counsel of the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), disputes the prevalence of these complaints, suggesting that they are isolated incidents instigated by "special interest groups that create their own devisiveness' ...

?Sen. Harry Reid?s Immigration Proposal Includes Gay Families?

Posted on April 30, 2010
On Top Magazine ("gay advocacy website): "The measure would allow gay Americans to sponsor an immigrant partner for citizenship."

Archbishop John Nienstedt: ?Let?s protect the meaning of marriage: The case for a constitutional amendment in Minnesota.?

Posted on April 30, 2010
"Do we really want first-graders to be taught that gay marriage is OK, or that the influence of a mother and a father on the development of a child somehow doesn't matter?"

?Gay marriage threatens family stability?

Posted on April 30, 2010
David E. Smith of the Illinois Family Institute writes at the Chicago Tribune: "Marriage is not a relationship that society created in order to give some people benefits and deny them to others. Marriage is the institution that societies worldwide have recognized and encouraged because this unique relationship between a man and a woman provides particular benefits to society, chief among them, the procreation and nurturing of the next generation ...

Federal judge to hear arguments Friday in dispute over C. Ind. school?s graduation prayer

Posted on April 30, 2010
The Republic: "A federal judge will hear arguments Friday over whether a central Indiana high school should be allowed to have a prayer said during its graduation ceremony."

AR: ACLU lawsuit against city still a possibility

Posted on April 30, 2010
North Little Rock Times: "The Arkansas Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union is still considering a lawsuit against North Little Rock for its practice of opening City Council meetings with prayer . . . "

MI: Muslim Woman Loses Suit Against Judge Who Banned Hijab In Courtroom

Posted on April 30, 2010
Religion Clause Blog: "In Council on American-Islamic Relations v. Callahan, (ED MI, April 29, 2010), a Michigan federal district court dismissed a case in which a Muslim woman, Raneen Albaghdady, sued a state court judge who requested that she remove her hijab in his court room ...

Obama pushes D.C. statehood

Posted on April 30, 2010
PoliticsDaily.com: "The issue of D.C. Statehood -- or alternatively of adding members to the U.S. House so the District can get some voting representation -- has been bouncing around Capitol Hill for decades."

The Liberal Media?s Assault on Christianity

Posted on April 30, 2010
Fox News carries this transcript of an Interview by Sean Hannity with S.E. Cupp the author of this new book that "explores why the liberal elite is only suspicious when conservatives invoke religion. Now, the book is called 'Losing Our Religion: The Liberal Media's Attack on Christianity...

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