Joyner v. Forsyth County, NC
2011 U.S. App. LEXIS 15670
4th Cir.2011Background
- Forsyth County Board of Commissioners begins meetings with invocations and a Pledge of Allegiance; no written policy initially.
- Clerk maintained a Congregations List inviting local religious leaders to give invocations on a first-come, first-serve basis.
- Policy later codified neutrality: invocations not listed as public business; participation not required; Board not to review content; prayers to reflect religious diversity.
- Between May 2007 and December 2008, ~80% of prayers referenced Jesus or Christian tenets; non-Christian references were not present in many prayers.
- December 17, 2007 invocation included explicit Christian content and Jesus-centric language; plaintiffs felt coerced and offended.
- District court granted declaratory and injunctive relief; magistrate and district court found policy as implemented violated Establishment Clause.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the policy as implemented violates the Establishment Clause. | Joyner/Blackmon contend policy advances Christianity. | Forsyth County argues policy is neutral and inclusive, and content is not the court's concern. | Yes; policy as implemented violated Establishment Clause. |
| Whether courts may assess the content of prayers under Marsh in this context. | Content reveals government endorsement of one faith. | Marsh allows non-review of content when opportunity not exploited to proselytize. | Content review warranted; content showed sectarian pattern violating Marsh-based limits. |
| Whether Wynne and Simpson control this case over the Board's policy. | Prior rulings support scrutiny of patterns of sectarian prayer. | Neutral, inclusive policy should be sustained regardless of outcome. | Wynne/Simpson control; policy and implementation struck down as unconstitutional. |
| Whether Pelphrey distinguishes this case and supports the Board. | Pelphrey shows no need to parse prayer content. | Pelphrey supports neutral approach; prayers taken cumulatively not advancing one faith. | Pelphrey does not compel result here; record shows broad advancement of Christianity. |
| Whether the Board’s neutral/inclusive policy can still offend Establishment Clause given actual prayers. | Demographics and frequent Christian prayers indicate government preference. | Neutral policy plus voluntary participation cannot be equated with endorsing a religion. | No; as implemented, policy produced sectarian invocations and violated the Establishment Clause. |
Key Cases Cited
- Marsh v. Chambers, 463 U.S. 783 (U.S. 1983) (legislative prayer permissible with neutrality; no proselytizing)
- Allegheny County v. ACLU, 492 U.S. 573 (U.S. 1989) (limitations on endorsing specific faiths; contextual analysis)
- Wynne v. Town of Great Falls, 376 F.3d 292 (4th Cir. 2004) (prayer policy invalid when prayers repeatedly reference Jesus Christ)
- Simpson v. Chesterfield County Bd. of Supervisors, 404 F.3d 276 (4th Cir. 2005) (upheld non-sectarian prayer policy; ecumenism and inclusivity)
- Pelphrey v. Cobb County, 547 F.3d 1263 (11th Cir. 2008) (diverse prayers cumulatively did not advance a single faith; allows broad content)