Thursday, April 5, 2007

Irving-based Boy Scouts of America wins Jamboree case in federal court

By Pegasus News wire

IRVING — An appeals court in Chicago ruled on Wednesday to overturn a 2005 decision by a federal judge, clearing the way for the U.S. Department of Defense to resume its logistical support of the national Boy Scout Jamboree.

For more than 25 years, Boy Scouts have held the National Scout Jamboree at Fort A.P. Hill near Fredericksburg, Virginia. The Jamboree, held every four years, hosts thousands of Scouts from around the country camp together for 10 days to participate in activities emphasizing physical fitness, appreciation of the outdoors and patriotism. Seven Presidents have attended the Jamboree since President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1937. The Jamboree grounds at Fort A.P. Hill are open to the public, and an estimated 300,000 visitors attended in 2005 along with 43,000 Scouts and their leaders. The 2010 Jamboree will celebrate the 100th Anniversary of Boy Scouts of America.

Photo not provided by the Boy Scouts of America

Pictured: an early, God-fearing Scout leading the charge against the hated British

The ACLU had filed suit in 1999 on behalf of several religious leaders, arguing that governmental involvement in a private group that excludes those who do not believe in God violates the constitutional requirement of separation of church and state.

The Boy Scouts of America organization requires Scouts to swear an oath of duty to God.

The ruling by a three-judge panel --Winkler v. Gates, No. 05-3451 (7th Cir. Apr. 4, 2007)-- stopped short of deciding the constitutional issue but held that the plaintiffs, as taxpayers, didn't have legal standing to raise the issue. The ACLU said it is considering its next legal maneuver.

"We are pleased that today's ruling preserves the training opportunity for the military that Congress wanted it to have," said Robert H. Bork, Jr., spokesperson for the Scouts.

Source: Boy Scouts of America

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