10th Circuit: No Establishment Clause Violation In Las Cruces Logo

Today in Weinbaum v. City of Las Cruces, (10th Cir., Sept. 12, 2008), the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal of two cases challenging the display of three Latin crosses as a symbol of Las Cruces, New Mexico. In one case, plaintiffs challenged use of the crosses as the city's symbol. In the second case, they challenged use of three crosses by the Las Cruces school district as a logo on its maintenance vehicles and in two pieces of school district-sponsored artwork-- a sculpture and a mural. Emphasizing the fact-specific nature of Establishment Clause determinations, the court said:

Here, the City’s name translates as "The Crosses" and, perhaps unsurprisingly, the City has opted to identify itself using a symbol that includes crosses.... We recognize that a government’s display of the Latin or Christian cross, and especially three such crosses, raises legitimate Establishment Clause concerns. Nevertheless, we affirm the district court’s decisions because Las Cruces’s unique name and history and the record in this case adequately establish according to requisite standards that the City and District's challenged symbols were not intended to endorse Christianity and do not have the effect of doing so.

Today's Las Cruces Sun-News reports on the decision. (See prior related postings 1, 2.)