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Legal counsel: Conway will comply with Act 573 posters until court issues injunction; ACLU seeks to add district to lawsuit
Summary
General counsel told the board the ACLU has moved to add Conway to litigation over Act 573, which requires posting a Ten Commandments display; until a court order says otherwise the district will comply with the law, she said.
Conway School District General Counsel Shasta Wagner told the board Thursday the ACLU has filed to add the district to ongoing litigation that seeks to block implementation of Act 573, the Arkansas statute that requires placement of a Ten Commandments poster in certain public facilities.
Wagner said the suit originated in Northwest Arkansas and currently involves several districts that have received an injunction preventing implementation in those districts. She said Conway had posted the required displays and that the ACLU has moved to add Conway to the pending case. "We have received notification from ACLU that they have made a motion to add us to their lawsuit," Wagner said.
Wagner told the board the district has been advised to comply with Act 573 until a court issues an injunction specifically covering Conway. "We were not that DESE could not advise me to violate state law," Wagner said, explaining that Arkansas Department of Education officials told her they could not direct the district to disobey a state statute. She said the district would remove the posters only if a court enjoins implementation for the district.
Wagner said the ACLU's filing followed complaints by two parents who photographed the posters and raised concerns. The district has been in touch with outside counsel; Wagner said she expects to lead the district's defense with support from outside counsel to limit cost. The board discussed potential consequences for the superintendent's signature on the annual Statement of Assurance (standard 3A7), which certifies compliance with state law; Wagner said signing while not complying with a court order could raise professional or administrative issues, including potential ethics or standards reviews.
The board requested an update at the regular September meeting and directed legal counsel to continue coordinating with outside counsel while following the court's next orders.
