The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Indiana is challenging Governor Mike Braun’s renewed effort to place a Ten Commandments monument on the Indiana Statehouse lawn. The ACLU filed a motion asking the U.S District Court for the Southern District of Indiana to allow an updated complaint in the long-running case, arguing that the decision is unconstitutional.

Background

In 2000, then-Governor Frank O’Bannon announced that the State would place a large limestone monument inscribed with the Ten Commandments on the south lawn of the Indiana Statehouse. However, a federal court blocked the display, finding that it violated the First Amendment. The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals later affirmed that decision, and the court entered a permanent injunction preventing the monument from being placed at the Statehouse.

Since then, the monument has remained on a private church property in Bedford for more than two decades. Recently, the federal court granted the Governor’s motion to reopen the case. Governor Braun’s motion cited a rule codified in federal law permitting the court to remove existing injunctions when they no longer support the laws as they change or are updated.

The Governor’s motion also referenced recent decisions made by the high court, including a decision to allow the Ten Commandments to be displayed at the Texas Capitol. Braun stated that the monument reflects foundational texts that have shaped the Nation’s laws, liberties, and civic life for generations, and that restoring the historical monument is about honoring Indiana’s heritage.

However, the ACLU of Indiana argues that when the State puts text like this on the lawn, it becomes a government-endorsed message about religion, and the First Amendment does not allow the State to send that message. The ACLU is calling for the court to block the State from putting the Ten Commandments monument on the lawn.

Original reporting: 93.1 WIBC (Indianapolis) — read the source article.