Supreme Court Petition To Save The Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial Cross Receives Broad Support

SAN DIEGO, April 10, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The States of Texas, Alabama, Alaska, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, West Virginia, and Wisconsin, The American Legion, Veterans with plaques surrounding the Memorial Cross, including Bronze Star Recipient and Retired U.S. Army Colonel David G. Epstein, and members of the U.S. Congress are among the parties, who filed friend-of-the-court briefs this week in support of the Mt. Soledad Memorial Association's (MSMA) petition asking the United States Supreme Court to save the historic Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial Cross in San Diego.  Liberty Institute and Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP, which represent the MSMA, submitted the petition to the Supreme Court last month.

"We are encouraged by the outpouring of support that the Mt. Soledad Memorial Association has received for its petition to have the U.S. Supreme Court settle, once and for all, the constitutionality of the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial Cross," said Kelly Shackelford, Liberty Institute President and CEO. "In addition to this national treasure—the nation's oldest Korean War Veterans Memorial—the fate of hundreds of other similar veterans memorials, erected to honor the selfless sacrifice of our nation's war heroes, hangs in the balance."

To view the briefs online, follow these five links:

• http://www.libertyinstitute.org/document.doc?id=142
• http://www.libertyinstitute.org/document.doc?id=143
• http://www.libertyinstitute.org/document.doc?id=144
• http://www.libertyinstitute.org/document.doc?id=145
• http://www.libertyinstitute.org/document.doc?id=146

The MSMA's cert petition to the Supreme Court seeks review of the case, Mt. Soledad Memorial Association v. Steve Trunk, et al., follows a district court's order in December requiring the removal of the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial Cross.  Erected in 1954, the Mt. Soledad Veterans Memorial is the nation's oldest Korean War Veterans Memorial. It contains more than 3,600 plaques honoring individual veterans' selfless sacrifice and service.  

Liberty Institute is a nonprofit legal group dedicated to defending and restoring religious liberty across America — in our schools, for our churches, in the military and throughout the public arena. Liberty's vision is to reestablish religious liberty in accordance with the principles of our nation's Founders. For information, visit www.LibertyInstitute.org.

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SOURCE Liberty Institute