SAN FRANCISCO — Public school officials in nine Western states may still lead students in the Pledge of Allegiance after a federal appeals court that ruled the recitation was unconstitutional put its decision on hold pending a review by the Supreme Court.
Judge Alfred T. Goodwin issued the order Tuesday, giving the Elk Grove Unified School District 90 days to ask the high court to review the ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The Elk Grove district was the target of a lawsuit that brought the pledge into federal court. Michael Newdow, a Sacramento atheist, sued the schools, alleging that his daughter shouldn't be subjected to collective recitations of the pledge.
In a case that bitterly divided the nation and the federal judiciary, the appeals court ruled in Newdow's favor last summer, declaring that use of the pledge in public schools violates the Constitution. It said use of the words "under God" amounts to a government endorsement of religion. On Friday, the court refused to reconsider its ruling.
Without Tuesday's stay, public schools in nine Western states would have been banned — beginning next Monday — from reciting the pledge. Those states are Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Montana, Oregon and Washington.
A Justice Department spokesman said the government had no comment.