A federal appeals court ruled that Georgia schools can continue to open each day with a moment of silence, rejecting a claim that the measure was an illegal attempt to return prayer to public schools.
In a unanimous decision Tuesday, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the 1994 law meets a three-pronged standard set by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1971.The high court said laws on religion in public schools are constitutional if they have a secular purpose, do not advance or promote religion and do not excessively entangle government with religion.
Harlan Loeb of the Anti-Defamation League said the law is the first of its kind to survive a federal appeals court's constitutional review.
The law was challenged by lawyers for a former teacher who was fired for refusing to conduct the silent moment in his suburban Atlanta classroom. Brian Bown, who now lives in Illinois, objected because he felt he would have to police religious words or actions by students during the moment of reflection.
His lawyer, Steven Leibel, had argued that the law unconstitutionally entangles teachers, as government workers, with religious matters. Leibel said he will appeal the decision to the nation's high court.