Santa Fe Independent School Dist. v. Doe
| Santa Fe Independent School Dist. v. Doe | |
|---|---|
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| Argued March 29, 2000 Decided June 19, 2000 |
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| Full case name | Santa Fe Independent School District, Petitioner v. Jane Doe, individually and as next friend for her minor children, Jane and John Doe, et al. |
| Citations | 530 U.S. 290 (more)
120 S. Ct. 2266; 147 L. Ed. 2d 295
|
| Prior history | 168 F.3d 806 (5th Cir. 1999), affirmed |
| Holding | |
| The policy of the school district "permitting student-led, student-initiated prayer at [public high school] football games violates the Establishment Clause." | |
| Court membership | |
| Case opinions | |
| Majority | Stevens, joined by O'Connor, Kennedy, Souter, Ginsburg, Breyer |
| Dissent | Rehnquist, joined by Scalia, Thomas |
| Laws applied | |
| U.S. Const. amend. I | |
Santa Fe Independent School Dist. v. Doe, 530 U.S. 290 (2000), was a case heard before the United States Supreme Court. It ruled that a policy permitting student-led, student-initiated prayer at high school football games violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. Oral arguments were heard March 29, 2000. The court announced its decision on June 19, holding the policy unconstitutional in a 6–3 decision. School prayer is a controversial topic in American jurisprudence.
Santa Fe Independent School District (SFISD), a rural school district in Texas between the cities of Houston and Galveston, promoted the dominant Baptist religion in its public schools. Members of the school board claimed that separation of church and state was a "myth." Gideons International was allowed to distribute Bibles in the public schools. A teacher handed out flyers in class for a revival meeting and then harangued a Mormon student for belonging to a cult. Prayers were offered before graduations and at home football games, led by an elected student chaplain.
Two sets of students and their mothers—one Mormon, the other Catholic—filed suit against the school district. The lawsuit alleged various violations of the Establishment Clause and asked for an injunction to prevent prayers from being offered at the graduation ceremony. Judge Samuel B. Kent of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas permitted the plaintiffs to file anonymously as John and Jane Does to protect them from harassment. However, school employees asked parents to sign a petition supporting the school's religious practices; anyone who did not sign was placed under suspicion of having filed the suit. Judge Kent then issued an order threatening, in all caps, "THE HARSHEST POSSIBLE CONTEMPT SANCTIONS" for anyone who attempted to discover the identities of the plaintiffs.
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