Anderson v. Salt Lake City Corporation

• Citation: 348 F. Supp. 1170
• Decision Date: 16 September 1972
• Docket Number: No. C 10-71.,C 10-71.
• Parties: Alma F. ANDERSON et al., Plaintiffs, v. SALT LAKE CITY CORPORATION and Salt Lake County, Utah, Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Utah

348 F. Supp. 1170

Alma F. ANDERSON et al., Plaintiffs, v. SALT LAKE CITY CORPORATION and Salt Lake County, Utah, Defendants.

No. C 10-71.

United States District Court, D. Utah, C. D.

September 16, 1972.

Bryce E. Roe, Salt Lake City, Utah, for plaintiffs.

Jack Crellin, and Carl Nemelka, Salt Lake City, Utah, for defendants.

OPINION

RITTER, Chief Judge.

By action of the Boards of Commissioners of both Salt Lake City and Salt Lake County, a "Ten Commandments" monument was erected on publicly owned land—the court-house grounds close to the front entrance of the "Hall of Justice", where the business of the City and County Courts is conducted, and where all citizens having business with those courts must go to seek justice.

The Eagles, a private fraternal organization, donated the stone monument and paid the expense of erecting it.

The court-house lawns on which it stands are owned by, and maintained at the expense of, the taxpayers. The monument is maintained and repaired, when damaged by vandalism, at the expense of the taxpayers.

And at taxpayers' expense, the defendants installed a light to illuminate the monument so that the inscription can be read at nighttime. And defendants maintain and repair the light at taxpayers' expense.

A stone bench, erected at taxpayers' expense, is located on the public walkway leading to the court-house door. The bench faces the monument which is set two feet from the walkway, so that passersby may sit, and read, and contemplate the message on the graven granite.

The members of both the Salt Lake City and Salt Lake County Commissions were persuaded by the Eagles to authorize the placing of the monument on the front lawn of the Courts Building in full view of the persons entering and leaving the building.

The stone is granite, five feet by three feet, set in cement for permanence, and is of the cleft tombstone shape of common depictions of the tablets bearing the biblical ten commandments.

It is inscribed as follows:

"the TEN COMMANDMENTS

I AM the LORD thy God.

Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

Thou shalt not make to thyself any graven images.

Thou shalt not take the Name of the Lord thy God in vain.

Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.

Honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.

Thou shalt not kill.

Thou shalt not commit adultery.

Thou shalt not steal.

Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house.

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his cattle, nor anything that is thy neighbor's."

At the top of the stone, on two tablets in the cleft tombstone shape, is a meaningless jumble of letters in what appears to be an eastern script, to give the illusion of authentic antiquity.

The stone is also engraved with symbols: located between the two tablets at the top of the monument is a triangle with an eye in it—the "All Seeing Eye of God"—a common symbol, in christian religions, which represents the Holy Trinity—the godhead; below the inscription of the commandments, at each corner is a replica of the Star of David, which is a well known Jewish symbol, taking its origin from King David— Christ was of the House of David. And at the very bottom in the center between the two Stars of David is a figure, Christ's monogram, the letter X superimposed upon the letter P, known in the Christian religion as a ChiRho—the first two Greek letters of His name. The monogram is placed at the bottom of the tablet in a position which suggests that it was intended to show Christ's signature to the complete context, (which, indeed, the Eagles say was their purpose, col. 1, lines 45-46, page 1172, infra).

This "Ten Commandments" monument was erected pursuant to what the Lodge calls its "youth guidance program" a long established and continuing program under which these monuments have been placed on public properties across the United States and Canada. The program has been in effect in the State of Utah for about ten years during which nine monuments have been placed in various cities in Utah.

The purposes of the Eagles with regard to that program have been officially set forth in a document produced by the Eagles organization and introduced as evidence by the defendants in this case. That document is entitled, "Suggested Program For Ten Commandments Monolith Dedication", and is quoted here in pertinent part:

"PRELIMINARY ARRANGEMENTS: (Important)

"Contact a prominent member of the Protestant Clergy, Catholic Priest or Bishop and a Jewish Rabbi. Present each one with a copy of the synopsis explaining the Eagles' Ten Commandments program, including the various endorsements of the clergy and other authorities. Explain to them the selection of the translation appearing on the monolith as well as the symbols appearing thereon:

"We, of the Fraternal Order of Eagles, in searching for a youth guidance program recognized that there can be no better, no more defined program of Youth Guidance, and adult guidance as well, than the laws handed down by God Himself to Moses more than 3000 years ago, which laws have stood unchanged through the years. They are a fundamental part of our lives, the basis of all our laws for living, the foundation of our relationship with our Creator, with our families and with our fellow men. All the concepts we live by—freedom, democracy, justice, honor—are rooted in the Ten Commandments.

"Several years were spent in research and in collaboration with members of the clergy of all denominations, with the result that a Ministerial Association composed of every Protestant church in the community, a catholic Bishop and a Jewish Rabbi, concluded that a translation should be used not identified with any particular faith, but one containing essentially all the Commandments. They were also interested in brevity and a translation that could be easily memorized.

"With the same care symbols were selected to denote such universal acceptance. The All Seeing Eye of God, is one of the oldest religious symbols, used also by a number of lodges and fraternal organizations. The Stars of David recognize our Jewish brethren. Christ was of the House of David and his symbol appears as Chi-Rho, the first Greek letters of His name, in a position denoting the acceptance of these ancient laws of God. This symbol also has the appearance of the superimposed letters P.X., an abbreviation of Pax, meaning peace. The flying Eagle with the American flag is the emblem of our country, as well as the emblem of the Fraternal Order of Eagles.

"We concluded that granite similar in color and texture to that found in the heights of Mt. Sinai, would be more logical and more enduring, since the Commandments were written in fire on the granite of Mt. Sinai.

"The erection of these monoliths is to inspire all who pause to view them, with a renewed respect for the law of God, which is our greatest strength against the forces that threaten our way of life."

The plaintiffs, all residents, citizens and taxpayers of Salt Lake City and Salt Lake County charge in this suit that the erection and maintenance of this monument by action of the Boards of Commissioners of the City and County on public property violate the First and Fourteenth Amendments of the United States Constitution, and Article I, sec. 4 of the Utah Constitution, particularly the Establishment of Religion clause.

They seek a mandatory injunction to compel the removal and to enjoin the erection of the monument.

The law that governs this case is the United States Constitution, Amendment I:

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof * * *."

The First Amendment is the direct descendant of Virginia's Statute of Religious Liberty, of which Thomas Jefferson was the author:

"Well aware that almighty God hath created the mind free; * * * that to compel a man to furnish contributions of money for the propagation of opinions which he disbelieves, is sinful and tyrranical; * * *

"We the General Assembly, do enact, that no man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship, place or ministry whatsoever, nor shall he be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer, on account of his religious opinions or belief * * *."

"A Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom", enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia, January 16, 1786. See 1 Randall, The Life of Thomas Jefferson (1858) 219-220; XII Hening's Statutes of Virginia (1823) 84.

The Virginia Statute of Religious Liberty is Document Number 80 in Documents of American History by Henry Steele Commager, 1968.

The Statute is preceded by Commager's excellent sketch of the climactic period of the Virginia struggle for religious liberty which covers the decade 1776-1786 from adoption of the Declaration of Rights to the enactment of the Statute of Religious Freedom:

"The Declaration of Rights of 1776 had announced the principle of religious liberty, but the Anglican Church was still the established church. In 1777 the liberals succeeded in repealing the statutes requiring church attendance and universal support of the established church, but it was not until 1779 that the church was disestablished. Even this was not satisfactory, and Jefferson prepared a bill for absolute religious freedom and equality. This complete divorcement of church and state was bitterly opposed not only by the Episcopal but by the Presbyterian and other dissenting churches as well. The proposal to make all Christian churches state religions on equal standing and support them by taxation found favor with such men as Patrick Henry, Washington, and other conservatives. Jefferson characterized the long struggle for religious freedom as `the severest contest in which I have ever been engaged', and it was not until 1785 that his bill, sponsored in his

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