Supreme Court Rules Memorial Cross on Public Land in Maryland Can Stay

(CNSNews.com) – A 32-foot tall World War I memorial cross erected almost 100 years ago and placed on land that eventually became public land at an intersection in Maryland can stay, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Thursday.

The court ruled that the cross is constitutional, because it does not violate the Establishment Clause in the First Amendment of the Constitution.

The memorial was the brain child of a committee made up of residents of Prince George’s County, Md., in 1918. The local American Legion eventually took over the project, completing it in 1925. It had been the site of patriotic events in the area ever since.

“As the area around the Cross developed, the monument came to be at the center of a busy intersection. In 1961, the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (Commission) acquired the Cross and the land where it sits, but the American Legion reserved the right to continue using the site for ceremonies. The Commission has used public funds to maintain the monument ever since,” the court stated. more here