Analyzing a Court Decision

1. Analyzing a Court Decision An overview of Textbooks, Distribution of Religious Literature, Religious Instruction, Religious Holidays presented by Bart Fennemore

2. Textbooks • Case: Smith v. Board of School Commissioners of Mobile County • Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit • Facts: • Accusation that several "textbooks promoted secular humanism by excluding facts about religion and by failing to present a biblically based or divine framework for decision making.“ • The textbooks were deemed neutral to theistic religion, neither supporting nor discrediting it. • Point made that "many of the books specifically acknowledge that religion is one source of moral values."

3. Textbooks • Case: Mozert v. Hawkins County Board of Education • Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit • Facts: • Objection to the use of a specific publisher's reading curriculum because one story's theme was mental telepathy. • Court case focused on the option to opt-out of the reading program rather than the specific curriculum cited. • Court found that the opt-out option could be abused to an extent that would make administration of schooling for all students too difficult and therefore should not be supported by law.

4. Textbooks • Case: Roberts v. Madigan • Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit • Facts: • Elementary teacher not allowed to have the Bible in his classroom library. • Personal Bible of teacher was to remain out of student sight and not to be read during classroom hours.

5. Distribution of Religious Literature • Case: Tudor v. Board of Education of Borough of Rutherford • Court: 100 A.2d 857 • Gideons’ distribution of Bible held in violation of Establishment Clause • Case: Muller v. Jefferson Lighthouse School • Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit • Distribution of religious materials is allowed but required prior approval from school. • Distribution must be allowed to all religious affiliations. • Case: Peck v. Upshur County Board of Education • Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit • Limited and passive distribution of religious materials allowed during school hours. • Restrictions include: • Private groups are responsible for display set-up and removal. • No employees of the school are permitted to participate. • Location of displays are not permitted to induce pressure on students to take material. • Source of the materials is not to be identified. • No one is allowed to stand at the display to encourage the taking of materials nor can there be any sort of public announcement as to the availability of the materials.

6. Distribution of Religious Literature • Case: Bacon v. Bradley-Bourbonnais High School District • Court: 707 F. Supp. 1005 • Sidewalks are public forums by virtue of their unrestricted use. • Religious materials are allowed to be distributed. • Case: Ruck v. Crestview Local Schools • Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit • Nonprofit groups that serve children are allowed to distribute flyers as doing so does not endorse religion.

7. Religious Instruction • Case: McCollum v. Board of Education of School District No. 71 • Court: Supreme Court | 333 U.S. 203 • Teaching religous classes in public school during normal hours of school violates the First Amendment's separation of church and state. • Case: Zorach v. Clauson • Court: Supreme Court | 343 U.S. 306 • Students are allowed to be released during school hours to attend religious classes off campus. (Released-time) • Case: Pierce v. Sullivan West Central School District • Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit • It was alleged that students who did not participate in off-campus religious studies were left with nothing to do during compulsory time, instructors were left without guidance for the time. • The policy was alleged to violate the Establishment Clause by conveying a message of endorsement of religion through is discrimination of non-participants. • The policy/program was found to not violate the law as it used no public funds and was purely voluntary.

8. Religious Instruction • Case: Lanner v. Wimmer • Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit • Academic credit could not be given for released-time Old Testament/New Testament courses taught by LDS. • Credit could, however, be used for attendance, "eligibility for extracurricular activities, and state-funding purposes." • Case: Snyder v. Charlotte Public School District • Court: 365 N.W.2d 151 (Supreme Court of Michigan) • Nonessential elective courses must be open to all nonpublic school students. • Case: Wiley v. Franklin • Court: 474 F. Supp. 525 • Religious courses can be offered in public schools provided: *they are "secular in nature, intent, and purpose." *they neither advance nor inhibit religion. *they do not become an excessive entanglement between government and religion.

9. Religious Instruction • Case: Malnak v. Yogi • Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit • A course taught was ruled to constitute the establishment of religion. • Case: Doe v. Porter • Court: 88 F. Supp.2s 904 • A Bible course was ruled to be an excessive entanglement of government and religion.

10. Religious Holidays • Case: Metzl v. Leininger • Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit • Good Friday ruled to have no secular value and therefore conveyed a message of a favored religion. • Case: Koenick v. Felton • Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit • Maryland created a weekend holiday from the Friday before Easter to the Monday after Easter which was lawful as it did not violate the Establishment Clause. • The holiday was for all without preference toward religious affiliation. • The holiday created had been observed in the school calendar for 130 years. • Commercially available dates were consulted to determine the Friday-Monday time period each year.