BATON ROUGE, La. — A controversial law requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in every Louisiana classroom could be on hold.
In June, civil liberties groups filed a lawsuit to temporarily block the law, claiming it violates the First Amendment.
The two sides presented their argument in front of a Federal Judge on Monday.
They spent the morning arguing whether or not the Ten Commandments are a foundational part of the American education system.
The plaintiff’s witness, Dr. Stephen Green took the stand first. He says according to his historical analysis, the Ten Commandments are not part of that foundation. He also claims the law misquoted the founding fathers.
The state then asked the judge to throw out Green’s testimony, saying his analysis was subjective, inconsistent, and based on secondary sources.
They went on to argue the law does not violate the Constitution or any current law.
“There really is no case for the judge to decide,” Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said. “There are no posters that have been posted yet.”
ACLU of Louisiana Executive Director Alanah Odoms says the law is the definition of a state religion.
“Frankly it’s really disrespectful to suggest that we just put something on the wall and take our hands away and let teachers decide what to do with it,” ACLU of Louisiana Executive Director Alanah Odoms said.”
Judge deGravalles says he will have a decision by November 15.
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