The American Civil Liberties Union is offering to settle its lawsuit against Forsyth County over holding public prayers before meetings if the county will agree to stop offering prayers that are sectarian and to pay the ACLU's legal fees.
Forsyth County commissioners are expected to discuss the offer and get an update on the lawsuit in a closed meeting today.
Michael Johnson, a lawyer for the Alliance Defense Fund who has been handling the commissioners' defense of the ACLU lawsuit, said yesterday that he would meet with commissioners today.
In March 2007, the ACLU sued the county on behalf of several residents over the county's practice of allowing ministers who give the opening invocation to specifically use Christian references. The ACLU maintains that the practice is an unconstitutional endorsement of Christianity.
No one disputes that the prayers often have Christian references. The ADF maintains that a pre-meeting prayer with sectarian references can pass constitutional muster if it is not intended to advance any religion at the expense of another. The ADF took on the county's case last year under a deal that had the ADF paying the cost of fighting the suit.
"I don't think it is a workable settlement offer, and I hope that the county commission agrees," Johnson said. "I certainly hope they are going to reject it, and I believe they will. It is my hope that they would stay the course."
The ACLU lawyer handling the case was not available yesterday for comment.
Sources knowledgeable about the ACLU offer said it would have the county pay the ACLU $60,000 in attorney fees and promise to not allow sectarian prayer at board meetings.
The board of commissioners voted 4-3 in 2007 to have the ADF defend the county in the suit. Commissioner Gloria Whisenhunt said that her position has not changed and that the county should continue the fight.
Commissioner Beaufort Bailey, who opposed the fight in 2007, said that it would be cheaper for the county to settle now than to wait.
Commissioner Walter Marshall, who voted against fighting the lawsuit in 2007, said he does not "know if we have the money to pay them $60,000. My inclination is to get out, but I don't know about the cost."
Under the county's deal with the ADF, the ADF would not pay legal fees or damages to the winning side if the county were to lose the suit.
When the ADF entered the case, local supporters of the county pledged to raise money to cover any costs that the county might incur.
Bailey said he thinks the county will lose the suit eventually, and that costs could mount to $200,000 or $300,000 "or more" if the fight lasts a long time.
A local group, the N.C. Partnership for Religious Liberty, has raised $55,000 to help the county if needed and stands ready to raise more money, said the Rev. Stephen Corts, the chairman of the group and the pastor of Center Grove Baptist Church in Clemmons.
"Our desire is to be of help all the way to the Supreme Court and we would be willing to continue to raise money as the case progresses from court to court," Corts said.
The makeup of the board of county commssioners has changed since the county brought in the ADF: Commissioner Bill Whiteheart, among the board members backing a fight, has left. His replacement, Dave Plyler, has not taken a definite stand.
Plyler has cast doubt on whether the suit is winnable, but he also said recently that the county should carry on if there are no county costs and if the county gets a ruling early next year.
■ Wesley Young can be reached at 727-7369 or at wyoung@wsjournal.com.
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