a win for Rev. Falwell and the ACLU

next time a conservative rants about the ACLU's liberal agenda, point them to this case in April 2002:

In Win for Rev. Falwell (and the ACLU), Judge Rules VA Must Allow Churches to Incorporate

April 17, 2002

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

RICHMOND, VA--A federal judge has struck down a provision of the Virginia Constitution that bans religious organizations from incorporating, in a challenge filed by the Rev. Jerry Falwell and joined by the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia, the group announced today.

"The judge applied well established constitutional principles to reach the conclusion that Virginia's archaic ban on church incorporation cannot pass constitutional muster," said Rebecca Glenberg, Legal Director of the ACLU of Virginia.

The ACLU joined the lawsuit as a "friend of the court" last fall, challenging the ban on the grounds that it violates the U.S. Constitution's guarantee of free exercise of religion.

Judge Norman K. Moon agreed, and yesterday ordered the State Corporation Commission to grant Falwell's Thomas Road Baptist Church a corporate charter.