U.S. District Judge Fred Biery granted a preliminary injunction against Senate Bill 10, a Texas measure that required public school classrooms to post the Ten Commandments. The judge found the law lacked historical precedent and was not religiously neutral, making it unconstitutional under established court rulings.

Judge Biery stated that the law failed to demonstrate a sustained tradition of such displays in public education. His reasoning pointed to a recent trend in judicial decisions opposing similar legislation in other states, further emphasizing a lack of national legal support for the measure.

In his opinion, Biery wrote that the Texas Legislature had fallen short in showing any broad historical practice of displaying the Ten Commandments in schools at the time of the nation’s founding or in the overall history of the U.S. education system.

Debate Over Religious Neutrality Reflected in Ruling

Biery also concluded that the bill “impermissibly takes sides” on religious matters. His ruling argued that the law improperly favored Christian principles over other religious beliefs, thereby infringing on constitutional protections of religious liberty.

Opposition to the law came from families across a spectrum of faiths and non-religious backgrounds. These families filed a lawsuit against the state, claiming the requirement infringed on their children’s First Amendment rights by imposing a particular religious viewpoint in publicly funded classrooms.

The legal challenge drew upon a recent June ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which struck down a nearly identical mandate in Louisiana. That decision, along with a separate June ruling in Arkansas that invalidated another Ten Commandments education law, reinforced Judge Biery’s position.

Legislative Intent and Religious Messaging Questioned

Although the language of Senate Bill 10 stated a secular purpose, Biery pointed to remarks from lawmakers that emphasized religious motivations. Public statements from legislators, he said, contradicted the bill’s stated intent by affirming a desire to promote religious teachings.

State Sen. Phil King, the bill’s sponsor, expressed that the goal was for all students to view the commandments daily. He stated the aim was to expose children to God's words regularly throughout their education, highlighting the religious underpinnings of the legislation.

Legislators also framed the bill as a return to traditional displays, referencing periods in U.S. history when the Ten Commandments were more widely shown in public institutions. Nonetheless, the judge found insufficient evidence to support claims of a long-standing, widespread tradition in public school settings.

Historical Court Cases Establish Constitutional Limits

Important to Judge Biery’s decision was the 1980 Supreme Court case Stone v. Graham. In that ruling, the Court found a Kentucky statute requiring Ten Commandments displays in classrooms unconstitutional due to a lack of secular justification.

Biery referenced that precedent to emphasize that educational settings must maintain clear boundaries between government and religion. He found parallels between the Kentucky case and Texas’s Senate Bill 10 that rendered the latter invalid under similar legal principles.

Currently, a Ten Commandments monument remains at the Texas Capitol, and as of June 2024, a framed display hangs in Georgia’s Capitol. While such monuments have occasionally been upheld when placed among other secular historical displays, mandatory placement in classrooms presents different constitutional issues.

Legal Future of Religious Displays in Schools Remains Uncertain

Despite the injunction, supporters of Senate Bill 10 argued that the Supreme Court’s recent decisions created space for new interpretations of religious expression in schools. Lawmakers said the evolving legal landscape justified the introduction of the legislation.

“It is time for Texas to pass S.B. 10 and restore the history and tradition of the Ten Commandments in our state and our nation,” the bill’s authors commented. However, Judge Biery’s ruling emphasized that recent court decisions continue to uphold strong boundaries against religious endorsement in public education.

With the injunction now in place, the law will not be enforced while the legal challenge proceeds. Further hearings or appeals could follow, leaving the future of religious displays in Texas classrooms—and potentially elsewhere—uncertain for the time being.