ACLJ: Supreme Court Should Not Exclude Religious Schools in Ohio Voucher Case.

Business Editors & Legal Writers

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 25, 2001

The American Center for Law and Justice, an international public interest law firm, said today's decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to hear a school voucher case in Ohio represents "a critical opportunity" to uphold the constitutionality of school vouchers and should not result in religious schools being targeted for exclusion.

"The Supreme Court has decided to tackle one of the most high-profile and significant church-state issues of the day," said Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel of the ACLJ, which will file a friend-of-the-court brief with the Supreme Court asking the court to uphold the constitutionality of the Ohio program. "This is a critical opportunity for the high court to uphold the constitutionality of school vouchers. It is our position that the Ohio program reflects a constitutionally sound method to provide funding for school choice. This is not about funding religion - but providing parents with an opportunity to select the kind of education they prefer. Religious schools should not be singled out and targeted for exclusion in this arena."

The Supreme Court today agreed to decide whether a voucher program in Cleveland - which provides tuition vouchers that can be used at private or parochial schools that participate in the program - is constitutional. The Ohio Supreme Court approved the program, but a federal appeals court struck it down.

The American Center for Law and Justice is an international public interest law firm that focuses on constitutional issues and specializes in religious liberty work. The ACLJ is headquartered in Virginia Beach, VA and the web site address is www.aclj.org.