ACLU Files Complaint Against Judge Who Sentenced Teen To Church As Part of Probation

The Oklahoma ACLU has filed  a complaint with the state's Council on Judicial Complaints against Muskogee County District Judge Mike Norman over the judge's inclusion in a probation arrangement for a 17-year old of a requirement that he attend church for ten years. The sentence came after Tyler Alred plead guilty to manslaughter in the death of his friend who was riding with him in an alcohol-related auto crash. Apparently the defendant has no objections to the probation conditions. (See prior posting.) In a press release announcing the filing of the complaint, the Oklahoma ACLU's legal director said: "Acts of worship should come from a freely-made choice to adopt a faith, not from the government giving its citizens an ultimatum to sit either in a pew or a prison cell." The Tulsa World today reports on the ACLU's action.