ADF attorneys fight ACLU in defense of Arizona’s corporate tax tuition program
http://www.alliancedefensefund.org/news/story.aspx?cid=4679
ALLIANCE DEFENSE FUND MEDIA ADVISORY
September 16, 2008 – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT ADF MEDIA RELATIONS: (480) 444-0020 or www.telladf.org/pressroom
ADF attorney available to media after hearing
over Ariz. school tax credits
ADF attorneys fight ACLU in defense of state’s corporate tax tuition program
to give parents school choice
WHO: ADF Senior Counsel Gary McCaleb
WHAT: Available for media interviews after hearing in Green v. Garriott
WHEN: Wednesday, Sept. 17, immediately after hearing, which begins at 11:30 a.m. PDT
WHERE: Arizona Court of Appeals, Division 1, Dept. E, Courtroom 2, 1501 W. Washington St., Phoenix
PHOENIX — Alliance Defense Fund Senior Counsel Gary McCaleb will be available for media interviews following oral arguments Wednesday in Green v. Garriott. On behalf of the non-profit student tuition organization School Choice America, ADF attorneys filed a friend-of-the-court brief defending the constitutionality of Arizona’s corporate tax credit tuition program being attacked by the American Civil Liberties Union.
“Parents should be able to choose the right school for their children. When it comes to our children’s education, the ACLU suddenly drops its talk of ‘freedom’ and ‘choice,’” said ADF Senior Counsel Gary McCaleb. “This program gives Arizonans a broad range of educational choices. To block those choices simply because the program allows religious and secular schools to participate equally is nothing short of discrimination.”
The state program for corporate taxpayers allows tuition scholarships to be used by students at public or private schools, including religious schools. The ACLU filed suit contending that the inclusion of religious schools is a violation of the so-called “separation of church and state.”
In October 2007, ADF attorneys filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the Arizona Court of Appeals after the ACLU appealed the dismissal of its lawsuit by a trial court (www.telladf.org/news/story.aspx?cid=4275).
Prior to the trial court’s ruling in March, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that donations made by individuals to non-profit student tuition organizations are constitutional.
A fact sheet on the lawsuit is available at www.telladf.org/UserDocs/GarriottFactSheet.pdf.
ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.