Ariz. appeals court rules against ACLU, upholds tuition program for kidshttp://www.alliancedefensefund.org/news/story.aspx?cid=4867 ALLIANCE DEFENSE FUND NEWS RELEASE Ariz. appeals court rules against ACLU, upholds tuition program for kids
ADF filed friend-of-the-court brief on behalf of School Choice America PHOENIX — The Arizona Court of Appeals Thursday upheld the constitutionality of Arizona’s corporate tax credit tuition program being attacked by the American Civil Liberties Union. Alliance Defense Fund attorneys filed a friend-of-the-court brief in the case in defense of the program on behalf of the non-profit student tuition organization School Choice America. “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 court certainly made the right decision.” 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 Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. The court disagreed, ruling that the law that established the program, Section 43-1183 of the Arizona Revised Statutes, “does not violate the Establishment Clause of the United States Constitution. Section 43-1183 has a valid, secular purpose; it does not have the effect of either advancing or inhibiting religion, because it is neutral towards religion and provides for genuine private choice; and §43-1183 does not involve excessive governmental entanglement.” 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. The court heard arguments in the case on Sept. 17 of last year. Prior to the trial court’s decision in March 2007, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled against the ACLU in a different lawsuit that donations made by individuals to non-profit student tuition organizations are constitutional. The ACLU then challenged the program in federal district court. The court dismissed the lawsuit, and the ACLU appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, where ADF attorneys are currently defending the program on behalf of the Arizona Christian School Tuition Organization. • Opinion issued by the Arizona Court of Appeals, Division 1, in Green v. Garriott 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. |