“Peace Cross” Stands

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The U.S. Supreme Court ruled today that the Bladensburg Peace Cross, a 40-foot cross honoring those who died during World War I, will remain standing. However, the High Court sidestepped the opportunity to overturn the so-called “Lemon Test,” sometimes used to determine if a law violates the First Amendment Establishment Clause. Liberty Counsel previously filed an amicus brief to the High Court in support of the 93-year-old war memorial in Bladensburg, Maryland that the American Humanist Association challenged as violating the Establishment Clause and “discriminating against patriotic soldiers who are not Christian.” Both lower court decisions previously ruled that the cross violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.