Posted on 04/24/2007 8:59:32 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
HARTFORD, Conn. - Religion has no place in post offices run by churches and other private contractors, a federal judge has ruled, citing the constitutional separation of church and state.
U.S. District Judge Dominic J. Squatrito, in a case involving a church-run post office in Manchester, ordered the Postal Service to notify the nearly 5,200 facilities run by contractors that they cannot promote religion through pamphlets, displays or any other materials.
He also told the agency to monitor those offices, which are distinguishable from government-run facilities and employ workers who are not Postal Service employees, to make sure they comply with his ruling.
Postal officials said they could not immediately comment on the ruling, which is dated April 18.
"We're carefully reviewing the decision and considering our options, including an appeal," said Gerry McKiernan, a Postal Service spokesman at the agency's headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Squatrito sided with Bertram Cooper, who in 2003 sued the Postal Service and the Full Gospel Interdenominational Church, which operates the Sincerely Yours Inc. post office on Main Street in downtown Manchester.
When he filed the lawsuit, Cooper, a Navy veteran of World War II and the Korean War, said he became upset when he went to Sincerely Yours.
"I'm walking into a place that's doing government business — selling stamps, mailing parcels and so forth — and they're doing this religious bit," Cooper, who is Jewish, said in 2003. His phone number is not listed, and he could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
The Manchester office has a label on an exterior wall with the Postal Service's eagle symbol indicating it is a contract postal unit, along with a Sincerely Yours sign over the threshold.
Inside, the facility has evangelical displays, including posters, advertisements and artwork. One of the displays is about Jesus Christ and invites customers to submit a request if they "need a prayer in their lives."
The office has prayer cards and an advertisement for a mission run by the Full Gospel Interdenominational Church that receives profits from the post office. There is a television monitor for church-related religious videos.
There is also a sign saying the Postal Service does not endorse the religious viewpoints expressed in the materials in the office.
A worker at the office referred questions to church officials, who did not return a message seeking comment Tuesday.
"There is nothing wrong, per se, with the church exhibiting religious displays," Squatrito wrote in his ruling. "Here, however, the church is exhibiting such displays while it is performing its duties under a contract with the Postal Service., i.e. the U.S. Government."
Squatrito said that the post office was a state "actor" under the First Amendment and that its religious displays violate the clause calling for the separation of church and state. But he said the contract itself does not violate the clause.
Manchester Postmaster Ronald Boyne, who also was a defendant, declined to comment.
The Postal Service had argued that signs make it clear that Sincerely Yours is not an "official" postal facility. It also said that it had no proprietary interest in the office, other than postal products and equipment, and that there was no evidence that the agency had a direct financial stake in the office's success.
The agency noted that no government employees work at Sincerely Yours, and insisted the facts demonstrate that the post office is a private entity.
The judge said the Postal Service relies on contractor-run offices to provide services to areas that the agency has determined to be unsuitable for official facilities. Contract offices are typically at colleges, grocery stores, pharmacies and some private residences.
“Separation of Church and State”. No. This is judicial fiat banishing religion from the public sphere, which is itslf a direct violation of the Constitution.
Fulbright scholar, Clinton appointee 1994
http://www.fjc.gov/history/home.nsf/judges_frm
Squatrito, Dominic J.
Born 1939 in Hartford, CT
Federal Judicial Service:
Judge, U. S. District Court, District of Connecticut
Nominated by William J. Clinton on July 28, 1994, to a new seat created by 104 Stat. 5089; Confirmed by the Senate on October 6, 1994, and received commission on October 7, 1994. Assumed senior status on November 1, 2004.
Education:
Wesleyan University, B.A., 1961
Yale Law School, LL.B., 1965
Professional Career:
Fulbright scholar, University of Florence, Florence, Italy, 1962
Private practice, Manchester, Connecticut, 1966-1994
Counsel, Town of Manchester Housing Authority, 1972-1979
Counsel, Connecticut State Legislature Judiciary Committee, 1974-1975
Clerk, Connecticut State Committee on Executive Nominations, 1974-1978
Chief counsel, Connecticut State Senate, 1976-1980
Race or Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male
BONEHEAD
Nam Vet
Don't worry, Bertram - when the Muzzies start running your local post office, you'll be paying the jizya with a smile on your face, or they'll cut your "son of pigs and monkeys" head off...
And the black-robed clown Squatrito won't have the stones to say "boo" to 'em, either...
How about with displays made up entirely of USPS Commemmorative Christmas stamps?
-PJ
Funny how the looney libs fail to grasp this simple concept.
Unfortunately, the PO always tells us that they no longer are a government entity.
This ruling is pretty clearly in violation of the 1st Amendment.
I thought that the post office is not outright a government entity.
There is no constitutional separation of church and state...I wish they'd stop lying.
Surely this clause is cited in the decision - right??
It does become annoying over time, as does the claimed constitutional right to abortion, taken from the first and fourth amendments by activist judges who either couldn't read or couldn't speak English.
Amendment 1 - Freedom of Religion, Press, Expression
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Amendment 4 - Search and Seizure
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Perhaps one can argue that they can’t have an abortion because there is probably cause that there is a baby in there.
You are correct. The Postal Service is an independent establishment of the Executive Branch. However, postal rates, except for special services, are tied to the rate of inflation, not a market rate.
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