7th Circuit Hears Arguments Over Evansville Crosses

Written by Don Byrd
The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments yesterday in the challenge to roadside crosses at the popular riverfront in Evansville, Indiana. The city allows private organizations to apply to use the space to publicize events, but plaintiffs argue that approval of the Christian display, which consisted of 31 6-foot crosses, violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment by giving the appearance of a government endorsement of Christianity.

BJC’s Walker Discusses Contraception Case Briefs, Warns Against Finding RFRA Unconstitutional

Written by Don Byrd
The Baptist Joint Committee’s Brent Walker weighed in today on briefs filed with the U.S. Supreme Court in the contraception mandate cases. Writing for ABP, he rejects the argument raised by a lawyer for the Freedom From Religion Foundation that the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, the law at the heart of the contraception dispute, is unconstitutional. Walker makes the case that RFRA is a perfectly acceptable means of strengthening religious liberty guarantees.

Maine Senate Rejects Religious Freedom Bill

Written by Don Byrd
By a 19-16 margin, the State Senate in Maine today rejected a bill that would have prohibited the state government from placing any burden on religious exercise unless required to achieve a compelling government interest. Similar to the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) this bill departs significantly from that law by not requiring the burden on a person’s religious exercise to be “substantial” before triggering this threshold.

Native American Inmates Petition Supreme Court Over Long Hair Denial

Written by Don Byrd
Inmates in an Alabama prison have appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn a policy that requires them to wear their hair short in violation of their Native American religious beliefs. The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected their argument that the Department of Corrections policy runs afoul of the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) by failing to consider alternate means of achieving their security goals.