Court halts new law requiring Ten Commandments in Texas schools

A federal judge blocked an Arkansas law requiring public school classrooms to display the Ten Commandments in a handful of the state's districts

The ruling from District Judge Timothy Brooks only impacts four of the state's 237 districts

Brooks, an appointee of President Obama in 2012, called the law obviously unconstitutional in his 35-page ruling

saying it's a coordinated strategy among several states to inject Christian doctrine into public school classrooms

The injunction comes as states like Texas and Louisiana pass similar laws requiring the Ten Commandments in public classrooms

Arkansas's law mandates the commandments be displayed prominently in public classrooms and libraries

It was signed into law by Republican Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders and took effect Tuesday for most of the state

The lawsuit, filed on behalf of families by the ACLU and other organizations, argues the statute violates the Constitution's separation of state

The plaintiffs say it forces students to adhere to a favored state religion and saw the law to be temporarily blocked as their lawsuit plays out

The ACLU of Arkansas celebrated the temporary injunction, saying it upheld every student's right to learn free from government-imposed faith

Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin, who defended the law, responded to the ruling saying he's weighing the remaining legal options

Similar mandates in Texas and Louisiana are also facing legal challenges. Families and religious leaders have filed a lawsuit against Texas to block the state's requirement

Last month, Louisiana, the first state to require the Ten Commandments in schools, had its law ruled unconstitutional by three appellate judges

However, challenges to those rulings are expected, and the laws are expected to reach the Supreme Court as the legal cases continue

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