On The Front Lines

Rutherford Institute Attorneys Ask Federal Appeals Court to Protect Right of Florida Activist to Display Nativity Scenes on Public Property

ATLANTA, Ga. -- Attorneys for The Rutherford Institute have asked a federal appeals court to protect the right of a Florida resident to display a Nativity scene on public property. In filing their brief before the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals on behalf of Sandra Snowden, Institute attorneys have asked the court to overturn a district court ruling that restricts the right of Snowden and others to freely express themselves within the forum for expression that exists within the Town of Bay Harbor Islands in Florida.

"This case is about the right of individuals--of all faiths--to freely express their religious beliefs," said John W. Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute. "We hope the Appeals Court will send government officials the clear message that restrictions on speech, whether that speech takes the form of verbal expression or religious holiday displays, are an unconstitutional violation of the First Amendment."

In December 2004, Sandra Snowden filed a civil rights lawsuit against the Town of Bay Harbor Islands, Fla., after local officials refused to allow her to display a Nativity scene on Causeway Island, a prominent public location owned by the Town of Bay Harbor Islands, during the Christmas season. However, as Snowden pointed out in her lawsuit, town officials had permitted a Jewish synagogue to display a 14-foot Menorah on Causeway Island during the Hanukkah season. Ruling that Snowden would probably succeed in her claim of viewpoint discrimination in violation of the First Amendment, the District Court granted her request for an order requiring the Town to allow her to set up a Nativity scene on Causeway Island. Snowden erected a Nativity scene in time for Christmas 2004, and a ceremony was held to bless the display. In April 2005, the Town agreed to designate Causeway Island as a forum for expression during the holiday season, authorizing Snowden and other Town residents to erect holiday displays. However, a dispute arose in November 2005 after the Town passed a resolution regulating the placement of displays in the designated forum. The resolution prohibits ceremonies at the displays, limits the number of displays that can be set up in the forum, and restricts the size of the displays to 15' by 12'. Insisting that the restrictions were contrary to the April 2005 agreement and were unreasonable regulations of expression in violation of the First Amendment, Snowden sought relief before the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, which refused to grant Snowden's request. In asking the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn the lower court's ruling, Rutherford Institute attorneys have also asked the court to rule that restrictions imposed by the Town of Bay Harbor Islands on the holding of ceremonies and on the number and size of displays be found unreasonable and in violation of Snowden's rights.