Family Council Files Amicus Brief Defending Ten Commandments Monument in Federal Court

Ten Commandments Monument,
Above: Former Sen. Jason Rapert and then-Rep. Kim Hammer unveil Arkansas’ monument commemorating the Ten Commandments in this file photo from 2018.

On Wednesday, Family Council filed an amicus brief in the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals defending Arkansas’ monument of the Ten Commandments.

In 2015, the Arkansas General Assembly passed a law authorizing a privately funded monument of the Ten Commandments at the Capitol Building in Little Rock, and the monument was finally unveiled three years later. But almost immediately, atheist groups filed a lawsuit to remove the monument from the Capitol grounds. The case languished in federal court until a judge ruled against the monument earlier this year.

Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin has appealed to the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals to keep the Ten Commandments monument on the State Capitol grounds. On Wednesday, attorneys from Alliance Defending Freedom representing Family Council filed an amicus brief defending the monument as well.

The amicus brief identifies a basic flaw in the lawsuit against the monument: Citizens who disagree with religion can’t march into federal court and demand any hint of religion be torn down. And the brief points out how the district court in Little Rock went against U.S. Supreme Court precedent when it ruled that anti-religion activists could demand religion be scrubbed from the public square.

The U.S. Supreme Court reviews monuments like Arkansas’ in light of their longstanding history and tradition. Historians have long recognized the Ten Commandments as one of the earliest examples of the rule of law in human history, and they have helped shape philosophy and laws in countries around the world.

That’s why the Ten Commandments traditionally have appeared in artwork at public buildings across America.

Arkansas’ monument commemorates that same historical and cultural legacy. It’s also identical to a monument the U.S. Supreme Court ruled constitutional at the Texas Capitol Building in 2005. With all of that in mind, we believe our federal courts will ultimately let the Arkansas’ Ten Commandments monument stand proudly on the Capitol grounds.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

READ MORE

Illicit Marijuana Still Plagues Oklahoma Despite Lax Laws

Marijuana

Illicit marijuana tied to organized crime continues to plague Oklahoma despite the state’s lax laws.

Nationwide, marijuana’s supporters have claimed legalization would reduce crime by weakening organized crime, and today marijuana is legal to varying degrees in many states. But evidence shows legalization has actually emboldened drug cartels.

In May, the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Organized Crime Task Force raided two illegal marijuana grow operations with 48,665 illegal marijuana plants and 1,803 pounds of processed marijuana worth over $3 million.

This month, the task force shut down five illegal marijuana grow operations in one series of raids and seized illegal marijuana at two dispensaries and a convenience store in northeast Oklahoma in another series of raids.

Because of Oklahoma’s lax marijuana laws, law enforcement has alleged that 40% of America’s black market marijuana has come from legal grow sites in Oklahoma. Arkansas State Police routinely confiscate marijuana from Oklahoma.

Oklahoma is not the only state dealing with this issue.

The U.S. Department of Justice says Chinese drug cartels may be making millions of dollars from illegal marijuana in states like Maine, New York, and Massachusetts.

California has seized more than $1.2 billion in illegal cannabis since 2022.

Illegal marijuana operations often are believed to be tied to labor trafficking and violent crime — contributing to what some have dubbed “modern day slavery on American soil.”

All of this underscores what we have said for years: Marijuana may be many things, but “harmless” simply is not one of them.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

READ MORE