Americans United for the Separation of Church and State has filed a lawsuit against Sussex County for having the Lord's Prayer open civic meetings, but county leaders say they'll fight this challenge just as they've resisted all such previous unconstitutional attacks.
UPDATE 10/6/11: The Lord's Prayer goes to court in January
-- From "Sussex County Sued Over Prayer" by Angelica Spanos, WBOC TV-16 (Delaware) 7/1/11
The lawsuit, named Mullin vs. Sussex County, has Barbara Mullin as one of its plaintiffs. Mullin lives near Lewes, and she and the other plaintiffs who are part of the Americans United for the Separation of Church and State have attended council meetings in the past and were offended by the promotion of one religion. The group said in a statement, "By persistently sponsoring this Christian prayer the county council has publicly aligned itself with a single faith."
Since 2009, the Lord's Prayer has been included in the council meeting minutes as an invocation.
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From "Four Sussex residents sue over prayer at council meetings" by Dan Shortridge, The News Journal 6/30/11
Former Councilman Dale Dukes, a Laurel-area Democrat, said previous council members had agreed to defend the prayers in court if anyone sued, and he hoped the current council would do the same.
The [atheist] group also has objected in the past to the council's sponsorship of an annual county prayer breakfast, though taxpayer money is not used.
Councilwoman Joan Deaver, the lone Democrat, attempted in 2009 to have the council's Easter break renamed "spring break," citing concerns from her Jewish constituents. Her motion did not gain support from any of the four Republicans.
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