Alabama's Moore is judge, not Ayatollah, insist groups at rally. (People & Events).

Americans United joined several religious and civil rights groups at a rally outside the Alabama Supreme Court in Montgomery Feb. 22 to protest a religiously based ruling issued by Chief Justice Roy Moore in a legal dispute over child custody.

Moore, best known for erecting a two-ton Ten Commandments monument inside the judicial building, has come under fire for an opinion he issued in late February. The case dealt with a California lesbian who sought custody of her three children, who currently live in Alabama with the woman's ex-husband.

The court ruled unanimously to deny custody to the woman, but Moore went out of his way to write a separate religiously grounded opinion blasting homosexuality as an "inherent evil."

Citing the Bible as well as legal history, he wrote, "Homosexual conduct is, and has been, considered abhorrent, immoral, detestable, a crime against nature, and a violation of the laws of nature and of nature's God upon which this nation and our laws are predicated."

Elsewhere in the opinion, Moore seemed to imply that homosexual acts are worthy of the death penalty, writing, "The State carries the power of the sword, that is, the power to prohibit conduct with physical penalties, such as confinement and even execution. It must use that power to prevent the subversion of children toward this lifestyle, to not encourage a criminal lifestyle."

During the rally, Laura Montgomery Rutt, a civil rights and civil liberties activist, read a statement from Americans United Executive Director Barry W. Lynn.

"Justice Moore has made a mockery of our freedoms with his narrow-minded, intolerant and frankly dangerous views," said Lynn in the statement. "His opinion reads like something out of the Dark Ages, not 21st century America. If Justice Moore cannot separate his personal religious beliefs from his job -- and it's obvious that he has no intention of even trying to do so -- then he ought to step down. Justice Moore was elected to a secular office to represent all residents of Alabama. He's chief justice, not chief ayatollah."

About 100 anti-Moore protestors gathered at the courthouse, among them several Alabama religious leaders.

Several organizations have called for Moore to resign, while others have asked the state Judicial Inquiry Commission to investigate him. But Moore said he has no intention of stepping down.

Meanwhile, a new poll shows residents of Alabama split over Moore's opinion. The poll found that 70 percent believe that sex between members of the same sex is "always wrong," but only 50 percent said they agreed with Moore that homosexuality is an inherent evil. Forty percent disagreed, and 10 percent either said they did not know or had no opinion.