A federal appeals court ruled on Wednesday that a nearly century-old, 40-foot cross honoring World War I veterans is an unconstitutional endorsement of religion.
In a 2-1 decision, a panel of the Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va., found the cross in Bladensburg, Md. “breaches” the wall in separation of church and state, the Wall Street Journal reported.
The American Humanist Association sued the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, the agency that owns the title to the property, in 2014. The association argued the cross violates the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause, which bars the government from making any law “respecting an establishment of religion.”
The concrete Celtic cross, locally referred to as the “Peace Cross,” was erected in 1925 by the American Legion and stands on a pedestal on a highway medium about a half-hour drive from Washington, D.C. It honors 49 men from Prince George’s County who died in World War I.
Read more at The Washington Free Beacon.
