ICYMI: Federal Court Strikes Down Prayer Before Commission Meetings in North Carolina

CHARLOTTE, NC -- The prayer routinely used by Rowan County commissioners before meetings is unconstitutional, a U.S. Court of Appeals ruled Friday.

The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va., ruled 10-5 in favor of the American Civil Liberties Union, which had brought the case on behalf of three residents who felt the commission’s prayer practice before official meetings was coercive.

The July 14 decision stems from a May 2015 lower federal court ruling that ordered Rowan County stop opening government meetings with sectarian prayer and said the county’s prayer practice was unconstitutional. The county appealed that ruling in September 2016, which was affirm by a Fourth Circuit panel. That decision, however, was later vacated and in March 2017, all 15 judges on the Fourth Circuit heard arguments on the case.

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“All we’ve ever wanted is for Rowan County to be a welcoming place for everyone, no matter their religious beliefs, and I am so glad that the court agrees that the Constitution is on our side,” said ACLU’s Nan Lund, the lead plaintiff in the case. “No one in this community should fear being forced by government officials to participate in a prayer, or fear being discriminated against because they didn’t participate in a prayer before a meeting for all the public.”

This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.

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