Calif. Supreme Court rules to preserve Mt. Soledad cross, publish court decision

Feb 23, 2007 / 09:43 am

The California Supreme Court on Wednesday affirmed the precedent-setting decision of a lower court, which upheld the right of the people of San Diego to transfer the Mt. Soledad veterans memorial and cross to the federal government.

The Court also denied an attempt by the ACLU to prevent the publication of the lower court decision.  The ACLU, who filed the suit against the City of San Diego to remove the cross, was seeking to have the decision suppressed so that it could not be used against them in future lawsuits.

The Thomas More Law Center, a national, public interest law firm based in Ann Arbor, Mich., represented San Diegans for the Mt. Soledad National War Memorial in the successful appeal and in opposing the petition to the California Supreme Court. The Law Center also filed a lengthy objection to the ACLU’s request for depublication.

“This is a major victory for religious freedom, the democratic process, and for the people of San Diego who voted overwhelmingly to preserve the historic Mt. Soledad veterans memorial and cross,” said Richard Thompson, president and chief counsel for the Law Center.

“It was also important for us to defeat the ACLU’s sinister plan to have the decision of the California appellate court depublished,” he added in a written statement. “This appellate court decision will forever be a stumbling block for the ACLU.”