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A federal magistrate has recommended that prayers referencing Jesus and other sectarian deities made before meetings of the Forsyth County Commissioners are unconstitutional.
The decision, by Magistrate Judge P. Trevor Sharp, was in favor of the American Civil Liberties Union, which filed the lawsuit against Forsyth County on behalf of Janet Joyner and Constance Blackmon, residents of Forsyth County who have attended commissioners' meetings.
"The defendant's prayer alienates those whose beliefs differ from Christian beliefs and divides citizens along religious lines," said Katy Parker, one of the attorneys with the ACLU.
"The government has to remain neutral on matters of religion, and that's what the Establishment Clause is all about -- that the government can't pick sides," she said.
Sharp's ruling stated that prayers used to open commissioners' meetings "referred to Jesus, Jesus Christ, Christ or Savior with overwhelming frequency," the ACLU of North Carolina Legal Foundation announced Monday in a news release.
The recommendation now goes to a federal judge.
According to the ACLU, the law permits government entities to open meetings in prayer if those prayers are nonsectarian, which means the content of the prayer may not favor any particular religion nor disparage any particular religion.
During the hearing on the issue, held last month, Sharp said he wanted to listen to audio recordings and read transcriptions of recent prayers provided by the ACLU.
In the lawsuit, filed in 2007, Joyner and Blackman alleged Forsyth County promotes Christianity because its prayer policy does not exclude references to Jesus Christ or other sectarian deities.
The lawsuit claims, by not restricting the mention of Jesus, the county promotes Christianity.
"No one has the right to tell anyone in whose name they should pray, and least of all in a government meeting," said Janet Joyner, one of the plaintiffs.
Joyner said she felt out of a place at a 2007 meeting of the Forsyth County Commissioners and decided not to speak out on the issue she was there for.
"I refrained from speaking on the issue because I thought it would harm the issue," she said. "That's not a position I think any citizen should be put in."
The county was represented by the Alliance Defense Fund, which defended the county at no charge.
The county argued that it remained neutral by inviting clergy to deliver the opening prayers.
At the time of last month's hearing, Forsyth County Commissioner Gloria Whisenhunt said commissioners send out more than 600 letters each year inviting clergy from all religions to give the invocation before meetings.
"We do not show partiality. We send the same letter to everyone, so I really don't know anything else we can do," she said. "No one is being forced to sit in our meetings. I'm very sorry they feel that way."
Each side asked Sharp to make a summary judgment, which is a ruling without going to trial.
Dave Plyler, the Forsyth County Commissioners chairman, said he's been concerned all along that fighting the lawsuit could leave taxpayers with a huge legal bill.
"It's a volatile, emotional issue. I don't know which way they will go," he said.
The Alliance Defense Fund said it will press on, but also said it will not pay for legal fees should the county ultimately lose. Plyler says a loss would, right now, cost the county upwards of $100,000.
The decision, by Magistrate Judge P. Trevor Sharp, was in favor of the American Civil Liberties Union, which filed the lawsuit against Forsyth County on behalf of Janet Joyner and Constance Blackmon, residents of Forsyth County who have attended commissioners' meetings.
"The defendant's prayer alienates those whose beliefs differ from Christian beliefs and divides citizens along religious lines," said Katy Parker, one of the attorneys with the ACLU.
"The government has to remain neutral on matters of religion, and that's what the Establishment Clause is all about -- that the government can't pick sides," she said.
Sharp's ruling stated that prayers used to open commissioners' meetings "referred to Jesus, Jesus Christ, Christ or Savior with overwhelming frequency," the ACLU of North Carolina Legal Foundation announced Monday in a news release.
The recommendation now goes to a federal judge.
According to the ACLU, the law permits government entities to open meetings in prayer if those prayers are nonsectarian, which means the content of the prayer may not favor any particular religion nor disparage any particular religion.
During the hearing on the issue, held last month, Sharp said he wanted to listen to audio recordings and read transcriptions of recent prayers provided by the ACLU.
In the lawsuit, filed in 2007, Joyner and Blackman alleged Forsyth County promotes Christianity because its prayer policy does not exclude references to Jesus Christ or other sectarian deities.
The lawsuit claims, by not restricting the mention of Jesus, the county promotes Christianity.
"No one has the right to tell anyone in whose name they should pray, and least of all in a government meeting," said Janet Joyner, one of the plaintiffs.
Joyner said she felt out of a place at a 2007 meeting of the Forsyth County Commissioners and decided not to speak out on the issue she was there for.
"I refrained from speaking on the issue because I thought it would harm the issue," she said. "That's not a position I think any citizen should be put in."
The county was represented by the Alliance Defense Fund, which defended the county at no charge.
The county argued that it remained neutral by inviting clergy to deliver the opening prayers.
At the time of last month's hearing, Forsyth County Commissioner Gloria Whisenhunt said commissioners send out more than 600 letters each year inviting clergy from all religions to give the invocation before meetings.
"We do not show partiality. We send the same letter to everyone, so I really don't know anything else we can do," she said. "No one is being forced to sit in our meetings. I'm very sorry they feel that way."
Each side asked Sharp to make a summary judgment, which is a ruling without going to trial.
Dave Plyler, the Forsyth County Commissioners chairman, said he's been concerned all along that fighting the lawsuit could leave taxpayers with a huge legal bill.
"It's a volatile, emotional issue. I don't know which way they will go," he said.
The Alliance Defense Fund said it will press on, but also said it will not pay for legal fees should the county ultimately lose. Plyler says a loss would, right now, cost the county upwards of $100,000.
