Attorney General Greg Abbott argued today in a brief filed with the U-S Supreme Court that a Ten Commandments monument on the grounds of the Texas Capitol isn't an endorsement of religion.
The Supreme Court agreed in October to hear arguments over whether the display is an unconstitutional attempt to establish state-sponsored religion.
In 2002, Thomas Van Orden -- a former attorney and homeless man -- filed a lawsuit. He wanted a six-foot tall red granite monument engraved with the Ten Commandments removed as a violation of the First Amendment separation of church and state.
Abbott says he hoped the court would use the monument as an example for the nation of how the Ten Commandments may be displayed.
Abbott plans to present the state's case on March Second to the Supreme Court. The court will be hearing arguments on the Texas case as well as a lawsuit involving framed copies of the Ten Commandments in two Kentucky county courthouses.