Earlier this year, with House Bill 71, Louisiana became the first state to require that the 10 Commandments be displayed in every public school classroom.
Last month, arguments were made at the district court level on a preliminary injunction on the law requiring a poster, or a similar framed document, with the 10 Commandments printed in a "large, easily readable font" to be in every public classroom, from kindergarten to state-funded universities.
U.S. District Court Judge John W. deGravelles released a 177-page order approving the injunction that blocks the law, but Attorney General Liz Murrill (R) recently told "Washington Watch" that the case is not over yet.
"Preliminary injunctions are still an early stage of the litigation, not supposed to be a final judgement on the case, but this judgment looks a lot like a final judgment," she told Tony Perkins. "I think the judge intended it to be viewed that way. He also intended, I think, to chill any school board from complying with the law."
Currently, with January 1 implementation deadline approaching, the issue is before the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.
"We were able to get the case expedited for oral argument, which means we are going to be arguing it in the Fifth Circuit on January 20," the attorney general relayed. "We've asked the Fifth Circuit to go en banc; that means we would have the whole compliment of active judges on the court."
She said if the case is heard before the full court and gets a good result, then it will then be ready to go to the U.S. Supreme Court.
