School 'Silence' Rebuked

November 15, 2007

Author: Jeff Coen

Source: Chicago Tribune

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/northwest/chi-silence_15nov15,0,4119943.story

The state's new law mandating a moment of silence at the start of the school day may be derailed after a federal judge on Wednesday blocked its imposition in one suburban district.

U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman issued a preliminary injunction barring the moment of silence in Arlington Heights-based Township High School District 214, calling it too vague and "likely unconstitutional."

The judge made the decision after a hearing on a lawsuit brought by local atheist activist Rob Sherman over issues of separation of church and state. Sherman sued to block the moment of silence at Buffalo Grove High School, where his daughter is a freshman.