JUST IN: Clinton Judge Bans Ten Commandments From Red State Classrooms

A federal judge smacked down a Texas law that ordered every public school classroom to display the Ten Commandments, ruling the mandate unconstitutional and handing a win to the groups that sued to block it.

U.S. District Judge Orlando L. Garcia said Senate Bill 10 trampled the Establishment Clause, which bars the government from endorsing religion. His order forces the districts named in the lawsuit to strip the displays by Dec. 1.

Plaintiff Lenee Bien-Willner, a Jewish parent, said she was “relieved” by the decision. “I am relieved that as a result of today’s ruling, my children, who are among a small number of Jewish children at their schools, will no longer be continually subjected to religious displays,” she said. “The government has no business interfering with parental decisions about matters of faith.”

The ruling covers the Comal, Georgetown, Conroe, Flour Bluff, Fort Worth, Arlington, McKinney, Frisco, Northwest, Azle, Rockwall, Lovejoy, Mansfield and McAllen districts. But the ACLU, the ACLU of Texas, Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the Freedom From Religion Foundation are urging all schools to ignore the state’s order.

Judge Orlando Luis Garcia

The ACLU filed a lawsuit in September on behalf of 15 multifaith families across 14 districts, after filing a similar complaint earlier this year.

“Today’s ruling is yet another affirmation of what Texans already know: The First Amendment guarantees families and faith communities – not the government – the right to instill religious beliefs in our children,” said Chloe Kempf, a staff attorney for the ACLU of Texas. “Our schools are for education, not evangelization. This ruling protects thousands of Texas students from ostracization, bullying, and state-mandated religious coercion. Every school district in Texas is now on notice that implementing S.B. 10 violates their students’ constitutional rights.”

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican running for U.S. Senate, has already sued two districts for allegedly refusing to comply with the law.

“These rogue ISD officials and board members blatantly disregarded the will of Texas voters who expect the legal and moral heritage of our state to be displayed in accordance with the law,” Paxton said. “Round Rock ISD and Leander ISD chose to defy a clear statutory mandate, and this lawsuit makes clear that no district may ignore Texas law without consequence.”

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