Ten Commandments Judge to Be Sworn in Again as Chief Justice of Alabama Supreme Court

News From An Uncompromising Biblical Worldview

“The true issue is whether we can acknowledge the sovereignty of Almighty God
over the affairs of our state and our law”

Heather Clark, Christian News Network — Roy Moore, known as the Ten Commandments judge, will be sworn in today as chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, regaining his seat on the bench that he was removed from a decade ago for taking a stand for God’s law.

According to reports, Moore will be sworn in by Circuit Judge John Bentley of Alabama’s 25th judicial district, who was a former classmate of Moore’s at West Point Military Academy in New York.

As previously reported, Moore won his bid for his seat on the bench this past November in a tight race against Democratic contender Bob Vance. On election night, the race tightened as poll results came in, at times tilting in the favor of Moore, and others in the direction of his opponent. As the pendulum swung back and forth, near the end of the night, it became more apparent that Moore had a steady and increasing lead over Vance, and in the end, Moore won by 52 to 48 percent.

Moore, who was previously removed from the bench for refusing to stop “acknowledging God,” had been believed to be the favored candidate since he began his bid for the Alabama Supreme Court, running far ahead of his previous challenger Harry Lyon. Lyon had been ousted by Democratic Party officials in August for making comments on Facebook against homosexual “marriage,” stating that it was “an abomination of God.” He had also opined that “only sick and perverted persons believe in homosexuality or lesbianism, though there are a lot of them.”

[...] As previously reported, in 2000, Moore ran for Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court after serving as a circuit judge in Etowah County. Upon winning his bid and setting up his office in the courthouse, he arranged for a two-ton granite monument of the Ten Commandments to be displayed in the building’s rotunda, which was installed the following year.

Soon after, Moore was slammed with two lawsuits from three separate groups: the ACLU, Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the Southern Poverty Law Center. Civil rights attorney Morris Dees of the Southern Poverty Law Center soon emerged as the central opponent to Moore’s display, arguing that the chief justice “placed this monument here to acknowledge the sovereignty of God over the affairs of men.”

Following a battle in the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, who ruled that the display was unconstitutional as it violated the Establishment Clause, District Court Judge Myron Thompson then ordered Moore to remove the Ten Commandments from the courthouse rotunda within fifteen days. Moore refused, but the monument was later moved to a room that was not open for public viewing.

Days later, the Alabama Judicial Inquiry Commission filed a complaint against Moore. His position as Chief Justice was suspended, and he was placed on trial. During his hearing in November 2003, Moore firmly defended his decision to place the Ten Commandments in the courthouse, stating, “Without God there can be no ethics.” However, the assistant state attorney general argued that Moore’s defiance would have an adverse impact on how others treated court orders. “What message does that send to the public, to other litigants?,” he asked. “The message it sends is: If you don’t like a court order, you don’t have to follow it.”

On August 23, 2003, a unanimous panel of the Alabama Court of the Judiciary removed Judge Moore from the bench.

Roy Moore Cross-Examined for Acknowledging God

On November 12, 2003, Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore was put on trial by a state ethics panel for not removing a Ten Commandments monument from the Alabama Judicial Building when a federal court ordered him to. This video clip shows (1) part of his cross-examination by then-Attorney General Bill Pryor and (2) the verdict read November 13, 2003.

Now that Moore has regained his seat as Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, he said that while he won’t display a monument this time, he will defend his right to acknowledge God.

“The true issue is whether we can acknowledge the sovereignty of Almighty God over the affairs of our state and our law,” he said. » Read More

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