Cross ruling correct
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he decision of U.S. District Judge David Sam is correct: A 12-foot-high cross in Parleys Canyon to honor a Utah Highway Patrol trooper who died while on duty does not violate the separation of church and state. It is clear the cross is a universally recognized symbol of death in this case, and not a religious symbol.
We had hoped American Atheists Inc. would drop its complaint. Alas, the Texas-based group plans to appeal its lawsuit to the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, according to attorney Brian Barnard.
That will be a waste of time, since Judge Sam effectively debunked Barnard's arguments. Sam pointed out that the U.S. military allows crosses to honor its dead. Also, the cross is used by the Utah Department of Alcohol Beverage Control in a billboard campaign to stop drinking and driving, Sam noted.
As Sam clearly sees, the crosses honoring the troopers convey a secular message, not a religious one. Had American Atheists Inc. refrained from filing a frivolous lawsuit just because it saw a cross, perhaps the organization would have realized that. There is certainly a separation of church and state in this country, but it never was intended to extend to situations like those presented in this case, where public servants are honored for sacrificing their lives for our public good.
Judge Sam's decision preserves, in all, 14 crosses honoring troopers who have died on Utah roads. The Parleys Canyon cross honors Trooper Dan Harris, who died in 1982 while chasing a speeder. The crosses have the UHP logo, the badge number and name of the trooper who died, and a short biography. The cross program was started in 1998 by the Utah Highway Patrol Association. The organization says its intent in beginning the cross placements was not religious. It was a public service, designed to honor the troopers and inform others of their heroism.
However, two years ago, the lawsuit against the crosses was filed by American Atheists Inc. The organization claimed that so-called religious symbols cannot be on Utah public lands or bear a UHP symbol. Barnard has said that American Atheists Inc. would support other examples of remembrance for the troopers, including U.S. flags or tombstones.
While we appreciate the partial display of tolerance, it is not necessary. The crosses will do just fine.
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