[Coleus]

Menorah, yes; crèche, no: New York village officials deny resident opportunity to display nativity

ADF and ADF-allied attorneys file suit, request temporary restraining order against Village of Briarcliff Manor

VILLAGE OF BRIARCLIFF MANOR, N.Y. — Acting on behalf of a local resident, Alliance Defense Fund attorneys and allied attorneys are seeking a temporary restraining order against officials in the Village of Briarcliff Manor who refuse to allow a crèche display in a public park.  The attorneys filed their TRO motion today after filing a complaint in federal court Friday against the village’s board of trustees and its manager.

“It is outrageous that a private citizen has been denied the opportunity to celebrate Christmas in a public park,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Brian W. Raum.  “The Village’s decision to purchase, maintain, and display secular seasonal elements and a menorah in the park while prohibiting a privately sponsored nativity scene is not only hypocritical, but unconstitutional.”

The village-sponsored “holiday display” includes a 9-foot-high menorah, bows, garland, and a “Peace on Earth” banner. Henry Ritell, a Catholic and a village resident, first attempted to display a creche in the park in December 2005.  In accordance with his Roman Catholic faith, Ritell requested that the display be permitted between Christmas and Epiphany, which takes place on  Jan. 8, 2006.  In a Jan. 13 letter from the village’s manager, Ritell’s request was denied.

Officials also rejected Ritell’s renewed request in two letters sent to the village on Oct. 30 and Nov. 14, 2006.   The complaint and request for a temporary restraining order filed in Ritell v. The Village of Briarcliff Manor in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York may be viewed at www.telladf.org/userdocs/RitellComplaint.pdf   ADF attorneys are co-counsel in the case along with lead counsel Feerick Lynch MacCartney and allied attorney John Stepanovich.

“Mr. Ritell’s request is entirely constitutional,” Raum explained.  “The Village’s claim that a  ‘public’ park is somehow not a public forum for free expression is unfounded.  More importantly, it is a blatant denial of Mr. Ritell’s First Amendment rights.”   ADF is a legal alliance defending the right to hear and speak the Truth through strategy, training, funding, and litigation.        www.telladf.org                www.saychristmas.org

[trisham]

“It is outrageous that a private citizen has been denied the opportunity to celebrate Christmas in a public park,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Brian W. Raum. “The Village’s decision to purchase, maintain, and display secular seasonal elements and a menorah in the park while prohibiting a privately sponsored nativity scene is not only hypocritical, but unconstitutional.”

“Mr. Ritell’s request is entirely constitutional,” Raum explained. “The Village’s claim that a ‘public’ park is somehow not a public forum for free expression is unfounded. More importantly, it is a blatant denial of Mr. Ritell’s First Amendment rights.”

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Instead they chose to take everything down. Sad.

[Cucumber]

Those who preach tolerance wind up to be the most INTOLERANT of all.

[muleskinner]

Northern Euro's should just go back to worshiping Odin. Since God said "You shall have no other God before me", we should be able to honor lesser gods below Him.

Anyway,I'm sure Odin could pound Mohamed into submission.