Friday, August 16, 2013

Permanent Injunction Issued Barring Oklahoma's 2010 Anti-Sharia Constitutional Amendment

In Awad v. Ziriaz, (WD OK, Aug. 15, 2013), an Oklahoma federal district court issued a permanent injunction barring Oklahoma election officials from certifying an anti-Sharia state constitutional amendment approved by 70% of Oklahoma voters in 2010. The court, following the 10th Circuit's approval in 2012 of a preliminary injunction in the case, said: "Because defendants have failed to satisfy strict scrutiny, the Court finds that the proposed amendment’s references to Sharia law violate the Establishment Clause." AP reports on the decision.