Religion & Law

Is the abortion debate over?

Posted on June 23, 2009
Micah Watson writes at Public Discourse: "The lines of disagreement in the philosophical debate over abortion have never been clearer. While the politics of abortion remain as tumultuous and contested as they have ever been, the underlying philosophical, ethical, and scientific issues have been clarified to the extent that any careful person can examine the arguments of both sides and come to a principled and informed position...

DC voters: Let us vote on marriage

Posted on June 23, 2009
Thomas Messner writes at The Foundry, the blog of the Heritage Foundation: "According to Brian Raum, Senior Legal Counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund, 'Marriage didn?t violate the Human Rights Act when the HRA passed 32 years ago, and it doesn?t now...

?Poll: More New Yorkers support gay marriage?

Posted on June 23, 2009
AP: "The Quinnipiac University poll finds 51 percent of New Yorkers support the legalization of same-sex marriage. Forty-one percent oppose it."

A Cross in the Road: Salazar v. Buono and the Circuit Divide on the Establishment Clause Remedial Question

Posted on June 23, 2009
Catholic University Law Review: "The divergent holdings of the Ninth and Seventh Circuits call attention to the different doctrines used by the courts in their respective analyses. Some methods of analysis, such as the Lemon test, the endorsement test, and the reasonable observer standard, are commonplace in Establishment Clause jurisprudence...

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Patterson?s bid to put NY marriage on the Senate table tomorrow may end the debate for control

Posted on June 23, 2009
"I asked Sen. Ruben Diaz Sr., who has pledged a rebellion if gay marriage comes to the floor of the Senate, what he will do tomorrow if this comes to pass. He said he will do 'something,' and assured me it will be 'big.'"

N.Y. Senate Talks Fail Miserably, Chaos Ensues; Dems don?t stand for Pledge

Posted on June 23, 2009
WCBSTV.com: "The odd thing was when Republican senators start the session with the pledge of allegiance. The Democrats didn't stand to participate and when one tried to stand, he was pulled down."

Revised ENDA to be unveiled

Posted on June 23, 2009
Washington Blade: "A revised version of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act that includes protections for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people is expected to be unveiled Wednesday. U.S. Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and other members of Congress were slated to gather Wednesday for a press conference at the Rayburn House Office Building to discuss the federal measure...

Lawmakers Urge Obama to Suspend, Then Repeal ?Don?t Ask, Don?t Tell?

Posted on June 23, 2009
FoxNews: "Dozens of lawmakers urged President Obama in a letter Monday to suspend the policy known as 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' and start working with Congress to repeal it. The letter, written by Rep. Alcee Hastings, D-Fla., and signed by 76 members of Congress ...

Maryland: ?Westminster woman sentenced for sex trafficking?

Posted on June 23, 2009
Baltimore Sun: "A federal court judge denied a Westminster woman?s request to withdraw her guilty plea Tuesday and sentenced her to 10 years in prison for sex trafficking of a minor, a 17-year-old cousin whose sexual services she offered in exchange for cash and drugs under the Internet heading 'Available now...

?Obama invites gay rights advocates to White House?

Posted on June 23, 2009
Sheryl Gay Stolberg reports at The Caucus, the politics and government blog of the New York Times: "As advocates for gays and lesbians intensify their criticism of the White House, President Obama has invited some of their leaders to an East Room reception next Monday to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion, the 1969 Greenwich Village demonstrations that gave birth to the modern gay rights movement...

Va. woman in lesbian-custody case loses again

Posted on June 23, 2009
Associated Press: "In a case closely watched by national gay rights and conservative Christian groups, the court unanimously upheld Winchester Circuit Judge John R. Prosser's dismissal of Lisa Miller's latest attempt to block Virginia from registering and enforcing a Vermont court order granting visitation rights to Janet Jenkins...

Nevada Toughens Child Prostitution Laws

Posted on June 23, 2009
Fox5vegas.com: "The bill, AB380, was one of few that passed without argument through the state Legislature this year. It enacts a $500,000 fine for sex traffickers prostituting children younger than 14, and a $100,000 fine for trafficking prostitutes 14 to 17 years old...

Discrimination under God in the academy

Posted on June 23, 2009
Wendy Kaminer writing in The Atlantic: "If the relationship between screening group members and expressing a group ideal seems obvious (practically tautological,) the 9th circuit court of appeals still managed to finesse it. In Truth v Kent School District, a three judge panel justified the denial of official status to a high school bible club, Truth, by minimizing the effect of the denial on the club's First Amendment rights and magnifying the effect of the club's exclusionary rules on other students...

Southern Baptist EC recommends ceasing relationship with church over homosexuality

Posted on June 23, 2009
Baptist Press: "The Southern Baptist Convention's Executive Committee recommended in a unanimous vote Monday afternoon that the denomination cease its relationship with Broadway Baptist Church, a Fort Worth, Texas, congregation that has been the source of controversy over its stance on homosexuality...

Sex education goes full circle

Posted on June 23, 2009
Cheryl Wetzstein writes in the Washington Times: "I don't know why, but when Democrats take control of the White House and Congress, ending abstinence education, which they denounce as "abstinence only," becomes a priority."

?Gay Activists Want Pro-Family FPC Rep Ousted from Civil Rights Commission?

Posted on June 23, 2009
CitizenLink: "Kevin Smith, executive director of Cornerstone Policy Research, is under attack from gay activists who want him removed from his new appointment at the New Hampshire Advisory Committee of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights."

MA: Court sides with Mendon on SOB license

Posted on June 23, 2009
Krista Perry reports in the Milford Daily News: "A Worcester Superior Court judge denied an appeal of a request for an adult entertainment license for Showtime Entertainment LLC last week because its second application was too similar to its first."

Ohio judge upholds ?no-touch? SOB regulation

Posted on June 23, 2009
Phil Trexler reports in the Beacon Journal: "Oliver found that the state law that bans exotic dancers and customers from touching each other does not violate First Amendment or other constitutional rights of the business owners."

NC: School ?sexual orientation? bill passes House vote

Posted on June 23, 2009
North Carolina Family Policy Council: "A bill to include "sexual orientation" and "gender identity" in a school bullying bill has passed the North Carolina House by a vote of 59 to 57 and will be on the calendar for a final vote on Tuesday, June 23. House Speaker Joe Hackney (D?Orange) took a personal interest in SB526?School Violence Prevention Act, sponsored by Sen...

Kentucky Senate panel rejects slots bill

Posted on June 23, 2009
Gregory A. Hall reports in the Courier-Journal: "The Senate budget committee rejected a controversial bill Monday night that would have allowed slot machines at racetracks as a way to shore up Kentucky's beleaguered racing industry."

LA Times: ?The ABC?s of LGBT?

Posted on June 23, 2009
An LA Times editorial: "In attempting to discourage taunting of gay students, the Alameda Unified School District turned what should be a basic lesson on treating others kindly into a primer on sexual identity. Its new anti-bullying curriculum for kindergartners through fifth-graders will begin in the fall and focus solely on gay and lesbian issues -- as if harassment based on race, religion or failure to wear cool clothes were nonexistent...

Pro-Life Women to Oppose Taxpayer Funded Abortion in District of Columbia

Posted on June 23, 2009
Christian Newswire: "Pro-Life Women to Call on Congress to Oppose Taxpayer Funding for Abortion. Susan B. Anthony List Joins House Pro-Life Women's Caucus to Oppose Taxpayer-Funded Abortion in the District of Columbia.'

Tapes Reveal Nixon?s View of Abortion

Posted on June 23, 2009
NY Times: But privately, newly released tapes reveal, he expressed ambivalence. Nixon worried that greater access to abortions would foster 'permissiveness,' and said that 'it breaks the family.' But he also saw a need for abortion in some cases, such as interracial pregnancies...

Uniform Probate Code recognizes child of assisted reproduction by lesbian couples as child of both moms

Posted on June 23, 2009
Beyond (Straight and Gay) Marriage: "Comments to these sections of the Uniform Probate Code make clear that the drafters fully intended the child of a lesbian couple to be considered the child of both of them for inheritance purposes. This was not an accident!"

France may dissolve Church of Scientology

Posted on June 23, 2009
USA Today: "In a groundbreaking case, a Paris court will decide for the first time whether to dissolve the Church of Scientology in France, which is facing charges of organized fraud."

Indiana: ACLU sues over prayer limits at federal prison

Posted on June 23, 2009
Chicago Tribune (AP): "Two Muslim inmates held in a special unit at the U.S. prison in Terre Haute say they aren't allowed to pray in groups as often as their religion commands and have asked a federal judge to ease limitations on worship imposed by the Bureau of Prisons...

Contest Gives Law Students Shot at $10K

Posted on June 23, 2009
Legal Blog Watch: "If you are in law school, you could probably use an extra $10,000 right about now. Well, if you have a video camera or know where to borrow one, here is your chance to win that much money or one of five $1,500 honorable mentions. All you have to do is make a brief video that describes your inspiration for going to law school...

Wash. Supreme Court hears case on Internet filters

Posted on June 23, 2009
"The state Supreme Court was set to hear arguments Tuesday on whether it's constitutional for public libraries to refuse to disable their Internet filters for adults who want access to sites that have been blocked . . . "

PACER Is Out of Pace, Petition Says

Posted on June 23, 2009
Legal Blog Watch: "Anyone who uses PACER knows that it has failed to keep pace with the Web 2.0 world. Its technology is outmoded and so is its cost structure. Now, some fed-up law librarians have launched a petition drive to ask the federal courts to enhance the system's authenticity, usability and availability ...

Mich. town settles lawsuit, lifts discriminatory rental fees on church

Posted on June 23, 2009
Alliance Defense Fund attorneys secured a settlement Tuesday with the village of Fife Lake on behalf of Forest Area Bible Church, which will no longer be forced to pay discriminatory rental fees to use the village?s municipal building.

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