Rhode Island School Committee Votes Not To Appeal Prayer Banner Case
February 17, 2012 by Personal Liberty News Desk
A Rhode Island public school district committee recently voted not to appeal a Federal court decision that ordered the removal of a prayer banner that had been displayed in a high school, The Associated Press reported.
According to the news outlet, the issue was brought up when a 16-year-old atheist filed a lawsuit against the school district, and the Cranston School Committee voted to not appeal the case after a lengthy public hearing.
The AP reported that the banner, which had been up since 1963, was covered since a Federal judge ruled that it was unConstitutional and ordered its removal. In the hearing, appeal opponents cited the legal costs – that were predicted to be more than $500,000 if it were to reach the Supreme Court – as grounds for giving up the fight.
“You will be wasting time and incredible resources. Half a million dollars? How dare you,” a resident said during the hearing.
Reuters reported that the reaction from the crowd was mixed, but the school must remove the banner within 10 days under the court order.
“The ACLU is going to win solely because of the fiscal condition of Cranston,” school board chairwoman Andrea Iannazzi told a crowd after the appeal was dropped.
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