ACLJ Calls Federal Appeals Court Decision On Ohio `God' Motto `An Important Victory for Freedom'.

Business Editors & Legal Writers

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 16, 2001

The American Center for Law and Justice, an international public interest law firm, said today a decision by the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declaring Ohio's motto "With God, all things are possible" constitutional is both encouraging and constitutionally sound.

"This is an important victory for freedom and a sound defeat for those who want to strip our nation of its religious heritage," said Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the ACLJ. "The decision comes at a time when there is a national movement underway to remove any mention of `God' from the public arena. The court decision affirms what we have believed from the beginning - the Ohio motto is constitutional and represents an important recognition that the motto reflects both the cultural and historical importance of our past and should not be banned."

The ACLJ filed a friend-of-the-court brief with the 6th Circuit on behalf of the state of Ohio in the case. The decision by the federal appeals court overturns a decision by a federal judge and a three-judge panel of the 6th Circuit - both ruled the motto was unconstitutional.

The decision upholding the constitutionality of the Ohio motto comes just three months after the ACLJ succeeded in convincing a federal judge in Topeka, Kansas to dismiss a lawsuit brought by the ACLU against the Treasurer of Shawnee County, Kansas who was sued for displaying a sign in county offices that bears the nation's motto "In God We Trust."

In that case, U.S. District Court Judge Sam A. Crow granted an ACLJ motion to dismiss the suit and in an opinion filed with the court in December 2000 called the ACLU claim that the posting of "In God We Trust" violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment "patently frivolous without any basis in law."

The motto "In God We Trust" appears on U.S. currency and has been the official U.S. motto since the 1950's - the same time the state of Ohio adopted its motto, "With God, all things are possible."

The American Center for Law and Justice is an international public interest law firm and educational organization focusing on constitutional issues. The ACLJ is involved in pro-family, pro-life, and pro-liberty cases and its web site address is www.aclj.org.