A Moment of Silence Before Courts Have Their Say

Does this enrage anyone else?!

For the article on the Daily Herald Website click here. But, here it is verbatim below:

As you read this, Buffalo Grove High School may have already held a state-mandated moment of silence today, but the courts may yet have more to say on the subject.

A federal judge Monday turned down a motion by the daughter of local atheist Rob Sherman for a temporary restraining order prohibiting Northwest Suburban Township High School District 214 from starting the moment of silence.

While U.S. District Judge Robert W. Gettleman did not grant the order, he stressed that he was making no judgments on the merit of Dawn Sherman's complaint -- only that it did not meet the criteria for an immediate restraining order.

"I have serious questions about this statute," said Gettleman, referring to the recently passed "Student Prayer Act" that mandates a moment of silence in all Illinois schools, during which students can pray or reflect on their day.

Dawn Sherman is a freshman at the high school, and contends that the moment of silence would violate her constitutional rights because it encourages and inserts religion into public schools.

But Gettleman's first question was whether Sherman, through her attorney Greg Kulis, was even suing the right party.

Sherman seeks an injunction statewide and sued the governor's office. But Gov. Rod Blagojevich vetoed the moment of silence measure, and was overridden. His lawyers Monday indicated he has no interest in defending the law and simply wants to be released from the suit.

Even the lawyer for the Illinois attorney general noted that office has not definitively decided to defend the suit.

"If they (the school district and the Illinois attorney general) work with us to tell us who they think the proper party is, we'll be happy to sue them," quipped Richard Grossman, another attorney for Sherman.

Gettleman suggested the Illinois State Board of Education might be the right party.

Sherman, the district, and any newly named parties will be back in court Nov. 14 at 2 p.m. to try to determine if the newly passed law is constitutional.

In the meantime, the district promised it would simply announce each morning that it was holding a moment of silence, without making mention of religion and without teachers making the sign of the cross or anything else that might signal a religious intent.