Attorneys for the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners have filed an appeal to overturn a lower court ruling banning prayer before board meetings.
Mike Johnson, the county’s lead attorney, said that the outcome of the case would have far-reaching implications for “countless public bodies throughout this region.”
“There is no previous federal court in America that has determined that all sectarian references are unconstitutional,” said Johnson, an attorney with the Alliance Defense Fund, a conservative Christian organization active in church-state issues. The fund is paying the county’s costs to litigate the case.
The Forsyth appeal comes after Greensboro Mayor Bill Knight added a nonsectarian invocation to City Council meetings. It is not yet clear whether or not Greensboro’s invocations will be challenged in court, but the ACLU told the N&R “(b)eing inclusive of various faith groups — although nice — isn’t enough to satisfy the law in regard to prayer at public meetings.”
I can’t imagine some type of legal action challenging Mayor Knight won’t be taken.
