Cert. Denied By U.S. Supreme Court In Boy Scout Case

The U.S. Supreme Court today denied certiorari in Scalise v. Boy Scouts of America (Docket No. 05-1260, May 30, 2006). In the case, the Michigan Court of Appeals had rejected Establishment Clause and equal protection challenges to the use of public school buildings, posting and distribution of literature in schools, and school building visits by the Boy Scouts. John Scalise and his son are non-religious humanists. He claimed that he, and his third grade son, were excluded from the Cub Scouts in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan after they objected to the requirement that they accept the Cub Scout Promise "to do my duty to God and my country." The state court found that the school was merely granting equal access to the Boy Scouts, and that the scouts themselves were not engaged in state action. The Associated Press today reports on the case.