Jewel
August 23, 2003, 01:55 PM
From the Greensboro News & Record (http://www.news-record.com/news/now/davidson22.htm)
LEXINGTON (AP) -- Davidson County's attorneys have asked a judge to dismiss a lawsuit seeking removal of the words "In God We Trust" from the governmental center.
The lawsuit, filed June 24 in federal court, said the 18-inch letters above the entrance to the building violate the establishment clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Attorneys for the county sought dismissal of the lawsuit in a motion filed Thursday.
"The argument is that there are no factual issues to try, so the court can rule as a matter of law on the issue," said Stephen Holton, the county attorney.
Holton said the county's attorneys found numerous precedents for the use of the phrase, which was adopted by Congress as the official national motto in 1956. They argued that its display is patriotic.
E Pluribus Unum is patriotic. IGWT is divisive.
LEXINGTON (AP) -- Davidson County's attorneys have asked a judge to dismiss a lawsuit seeking removal of the words "In God We Trust" from the governmental center.
The lawsuit, filed June 24 in federal court, said the 18-inch letters above the entrance to the building violate the establishment clause of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Attorneys for the county sought dismissal of the lawsuit in a motion filed Thursday.
"The argument is that there are no factual issues to try, so the court can rule as a matter of law on the issue," said Stephen Holton, the county attorney.
Holton said the county's attorneys found numerous precedents for the use of the phrase, which was adopted by Congress as the official national motto in 1956. They argued that its display is patriotic.
E Pluribus Unum is patriotic. IGWT is divisive.