Alabama Government:
Separation Between Church and
State
The Issue of Roy Moore and the Ten
Commandments Monument
Basic focus of the paper
Evaluate Moore’s ideas on how he
recognizes God as the moral basis of law
Review the case and its standing with the
First Amendment (“establishment clause”)
Review the Alabama and Federal Canons of
Judiciary Ethics
Review the case and its position of
“separation between church and state.
Roy Moore
Twenty-eighth Chief
Justice (January 15,2001)
Moore is a native of
Etowah County, AL
He obtained his Bachelor
of Science from the
United States Military
Academy at West Point
Moore Completed his
Juris Doctorate Degree
from the University of
Alabama
Instances before the Ten
Commandment monument
Moore was a prosecutor of Etowah County,
AL
Moore put up a wooden plaque of the Ten
Commandments in his office for decoration
In Gadsden there is and was a history of
prayer and other unconstitutional factors in
the courtroom setting
The ACLU sued the court
The Ten Commandments
Monument
On August 1, 2001,
Moore placed a two
ton monument in the
rotunda of the State
Judicial Building
Ten Commandments Monument
The monument has a
religious base to it
The monument contains
historical quotes that deal
with a higher power
The Ten Commandments
is in the front of the
monument and is the main
focus of the monument
What the Ten Commandment
Monument Contains
“The Ten
Commandments” of
God
Declaration of
Independence
The Pledge of
Allegiance
The Judiciary Act of
1789
Quotes from Thomas
Jefferson, John Jay,
and James Madison
National Motto
Glassroth v. Moore
Violated the establishment clause and
sought for its removal (Nov. 18, 2003)
Entered a permanent injunction directing
Moore to remove the monument (Dec. 19,
2003)
Moore appealed to the U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit (July 1,
2003)
Case against Roy S. Moore
Ignored state and federal supremacy
Violated the First Amendment
Establishment Clause to the First
Amendment
Violated the Canons of Judicial Ethics
The First Amendment
“Congress shall make no law respecting an
establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free
exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of
speech, or of the press; or the right of the people to
peaceably to assemble, and to petition the
Government for a redress of grievances.”
Establishment Clause- forbids the government
from interfering with individual religious beliefs
Supporting Cases
Engel v. Vitale
Stone v. Graham
Hamilton v. Regents of the University of
California
Canons of Judicial Ethics
Failing to uphold the integrity and
independence of the judiciary
Failing to observe high standards of conduct
so that the integrity and independence of the
judiciary might be preserved
Failing to avoid impropriety and the
appearance of impropriety
Canons of Judicial Ethics
Failing to respect and comply with the law
Failing to conduct himself in a manner
promoting public confidence in the integrity
and impartiality of the judiciary
Failing to avoid conduct prejudicial to the
administration of justice so as to bring the
judicial office into disrepute
Attorney General Bill Pryor
Agrees with the displaying
of the Ten
Commandments
“The rule of the law
means that no person,
including the chief justice
of Alabama, is above the
law.
Under our Constitution,
federal and state courts
must respect the orders of
each other.
The Final Verdict
The Supreme Court denied Moore’s plea to
hear the case
The Ten Commandment monument was
removed from the Alabama Judicial
Building in Montgomery, Al
Roy S. Moore was removed from office as
the Alabama Chief Justice