County threatened with suit over its monument

| October 12, 2004 1:00 AM

A Washington, D.C., advocacy group called Americans United for Separation of Church and State sent the county a letter earlier this year that threatened litigation if the monument wasn't removed.

The Daily Inter Lake

Flathead County also has a Ten Commandments monument, which was donated by the Fraternal Order of Eagles in the late 1960s and stands in front of the courthouse.

A Washington, D.C., advocacy group called Americans United for Separation of Church and State sent the county a letter earlier this year that threatened litigation if the monument wasn't removed.

The group cited complaints from unnamed county residents that the monument violates the First Amendment.

County commissioners vowed to defend the monument.

Since then, an "Evolution of Law" display has been built around the Ten Commandments monument. The display includes historical documents such as the Declaration of Independence.

Fund-raising is under way to purchase and install other monuments at the courthouse representing the Bill of Rights, the Mayflower Compact, the Magna Carta and the preambles to the Montana and U.S. constitutions.