In Kentucky yesterday, a district court struck down a 2006 law creating the state's Office of Homeland Security. References to a "dependence on God" in the bill raised concerns for Judge Thomas Wingate.
Proponents tried to claim the provisions were merely the equivalent of "In God We Trust" on currency, but the judge disagreed.
“The Commonwealth's history does not exclude God from the statutes, but it has never permitted the General Assembly to demand that its citizens depend on Almighty God,” Wingate wrote.
He said the provision likely would have been permissible had it merely allowed Homeland Security officials to request God's assistance in protecting Kentucky.
“However, passing a law that requires statements about God and the nature of God to be included in training and educational materials, and mandates memorializing legislators' belief in God on government buildings does not allow mature adults who disagree with this position to excuse themselves from participating in the religious aspects of this legislation,” he wrote.
