The Atlanta Journal Constitution reports that on Friday, an Atlanta, Georgia federal district court, in a 65-page order, refused to issue a preliminary injunction against the Cobb County Commission's practice of opening its sessions with a prayer. Judge Richard Story said the plaintiffs had not proven that the Commission's practice of inviting clergy of various faiths to deliver an opening prayer resulted "in the impermissible appearance of an official preference for one sect or creed to the exclusion of others." The court explained: "To be sure, many of these speakers, in offering their invocations, identify the deity to whom they direct their prayer. In that respect, they surely convey their alignment with one religious creed to the exclusion of others. But viewed cumulatively, given the diversity in the denominations and faiths represented, it is difficult to extrapolate from any one speaker's affiliation the preference on the part of the Cobb County government." The suit, captioned Pelphrey v. Cobb County, was filed by the Georgia Civil Liberties Union. (See prior posting.) The text of the complaint, plaintiff's motion for a preliminary injunction and the GCLU's press release upon filing the case are available at its website.
UPDATE: The full opinion in BATS v. Cobb County is now available at 2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1428 (ND Ga., Jan. 13, 2006).
