Church And State Lawsuit To Be Set For Trial

HOUSTON, TX — The trial date in the lawsuit filed against Montgomery County Justice of the Peace Wayne Mack by the Freedom from Religion Foundation earlier this year is expected to be set for October 2018, when the case goes before Judge Ewing Werlein for a docket call next month.

The lawsuit was filed earlier this year on behalf of three anonymous attorneys who alleged Mack violated the constitution’s separation of church and state, by holding chaplain-led prayer meetings in his courtrooms before the start of legal proceedings. (Want to get daily news updates and other events going on in your area? Sign up for the free Conroe-Montgomery County Patch morning newsletter.)

READ: Montgomery County JP Court Prayer Brings Lawsuit

In May, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a motion to intervene in a federal lawsuit on behalf of the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement, and called the lawsuit, “an affront to religious liberty.”

"The Commission’s prayer practice, like Judge Mack’s courtroom prayer, is completely consistent with our nation’s history of protecting religious expression," Paxton said in a statement.

Meanwhile, attorney’s on both sides are going through the discovery process of preparation, as they wait to see if Werlein rules to dismiss the case, based on a motion made by Chelsey Youman, an attorney with Plano-based First Liberty Institute, representing Mack in this case, the Houston Chronicle reported.

Attorneys will meet in Werlein’s courtroom on Oct. 5.

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