6th Circuit Denies En Banc Review In Ten Commandments Case

The U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday denied en banc review in ACLU of Kentucky v. McCreary County (full text of court order). In the case, a majority of a 6th Circuit panel (see prior posting) approved issuance of a permanent injunction against display of the 10 Commandments along with other historical documents that refer to God in two Kentucky county court houses. In 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court found the display violated the Establishment Clause, but later litigation focused on whether the counties had changed their religious purposes for the display. A majority of the panel agreed with the district court that resolutions adopted in 2005 were adopted only as a litigating position. However the panel decision produced three separate opinions. [Thanks to Peter Irons for the lead.]