Prayer suit not major focus

Forsyth County will continue to defend a suit that objects to prayers containing sectarian references before meetings of the county board of commissioners.

Board Chairman Dave Plyler, who is considered the board's possible swing vote on the prayer issue, said yesterday that he thinks the county should go ahead and see how the suit fares in federal court. He added that if the suit starts costing the county money he will rethink his decision.

"We have an even split on the board," Plyler said. "If we have gone this far, I would rather have the board deal with more pressing issues than this one. I think we might as well let it go ahead and run its course."

The American Civil Liberties Union filed suit in federal court against the county in March 2007 on behalf of several county residents. The suit challenged the constitutionality of the board allowing pre-meeting prayers that contained specifically Christian references such "in Jesus' name we pray."

Commissioners voted 4-3 in April 2007 to defend the suit, splitting on party lines with Republicans in the majority. The board enlisted the help of the Alliance Defense Fund, which fights similar suits around the country. The ADF said it would defend the suit without cost to the county, although it also said it would not pay any costs awarded to the plaintiffs if they prevailed in the suit.

Plyler, a moderate Republican, took the place in December of a more conservative GOP member, Bill Whiteheart, who had supported fighting the suit. Last spring, Plyler called the suit unwinnable, but in recent days had not committed to voting one way or another should the matter come to a new vote.

Plyler said he spoke to ADF attorney Mike Johnson, who once more assured him that the legal defense would not cost the county anything. Cost became an issue last week, when commissioners learned that the supposedly free defense was costing the county some staff time in providing information in regard to the suit.

Plyler and County Manager Dudley Watts said yesterday that they probably wouldn't try to charge the ADF for every conceivable indirect cost associated with the suit, such as time a county attorney or staffer might spend reviewing documents that the ADF files in the case.

Johnson said he believes that the suit may be heard and ruled on by a judge during the first quarter of 2009, another factor that is swaying Plyler's thinking. Plyler said he wants to get settled into his role as chairman by focusing on economic development and other current problems, rather than rehashing the prayer issue.

Democratic board member Beaufort Bailey said last week that he would push for a motion early in the new year to no longer fight the suit. Bailey said yesterday that he told Plyler he would hold off on that motion at least until the end of March, when the first quarter has passed.

Bailey said he also doesn't want to put Plyler "on the spot" with Stu Epperson Jr., a conservative Christian broadcaster for whom Plyler works in the area of client and public relations. Bailey said Plyler didn't bring up the Epperson connection. Plyler and Epperson both said yesterday that their business relationship had not entered into Plyler's decision.

Katherine Parker, the ACLU attorney in the case, wouldn't speculate on whether the federal court might rule on the suit during early 2009. She confirmed that both sides will be asking the court for summary judgment -- a ruling from the judge on the case that wouldn't require it to go to full trial.

However, the county simply cannot decide it wants out of the suit, Parker said.

"The county can't drop the suit unless they settle with us," she said, adding that she couldn't say whether such a settlement might include a request for the county to pay the ACLU's legal fees or any damages.

"I can say that we have incurred significant legal fees at this point," Parker said. "I can tell you that one thing that would be in a settlement would be an agreement that the county would adopt a nonsectarian prayer policy."

■ Wesley Young can be reached at 727-7369 or at wyoung@wsjournal.com.