Boise, Idaho 10 Commandments Initiative Can Proceed

On Monday the Idaho Supreme Court ruled 4-1 that a challenged ballot initiative can proceed. The initiative asks Boise residents whether a Ten Commandments monument, donated in 1965 by the Fraternal Order of Eagles, should be placed back in a city park. The monument was moved to the grounds of a cathedral in 2004. The case, In re Initiative Petititon for A Ten Commandments Display, (ID Sup. Ct., Aug. 14, 2006), held that the challenge to the initiative was not ripe for adjudication. At issue was whether the initiative called for action that was merely administrative in nature, in which case it is not a proper subject for a voter initiative. The court said that it would not rule on that issue now, because the initiative might never pass, or if it did, City Council might exercise its authority to amend or reject it. Justice Trout dissenting thought that the case was ripe, and that the proposal was administrative so that the city is not required to hold an initiative election on it. Tuesday's Seattle Times covered the decision. [Thanks to Blog from the Capital for the lead.]