HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – A federal judge has ordered the immediate removal of Ten Commandments posters from classrooms and libraries in Lakeside School District No. 9, marking the latest court intervention blocking Arkansas’ mandate for such displays in public schools.
U.S. District Judge Timothy L. Brooks issued the temporary restraining order on Thursday in the ongoing lawsuit Stinson v. Fayetteville School District No. 1, less than 24 hours after plaintiffs filed a supplemental complaint targeting Lakeside’s compliance with Act 573 of 2025. The law requires all public school districts to post a specific version of the Ten Commandments in every classroom and library by the start of the 2025-2026 school year.
The ruling cites violations of the First Amendment’s Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses, stating that the displays impose a government-chosen religious text on students. Judge Brooks described the mandate as “obviously unconstitutional,” extending prior injunctions that halted enforcement in four Northwest Arkansas districts on Aug. 4 and in Conway School District on Aug. 28.
The lawsuit, brought by parents and organizations including the ACLU of Arkansas, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, the Freedom From Religion Foundation and the law firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, argues the law endorses Christianity and alienates non-Christian students and families.
Rachel Laser, president and CEO of Americans United, welcomed the decision, saying, “All Arkansas public school districts should heed the court’s clear warning: Displaying the Ten Commandments in classrooms is ‘obviously unconstitutional.’”
John Williams, legal director for the ACLU of Arkansas, added, “This order is yet another reminder that public schools cannot impose religion on students.”
Heather L. Weaver, senior staff attorney for the ACLU’s Program on Freedom of Religion and Belief, noted the impact on Lakeside students: “Today’s order ensures that our client, and all Lakeside students, will no longer be forced to submit to government-imposed scriptural displays as a condition of attending public school.”
Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-president of the Freedom From Religion Foundation, emphasized, “Today’s decision should make it abundantly clear to all public schools that pushing religion on students will not be tolerated.”
Attorney General Tim Griffin’s office plans to defend the law. Spokesperson Jeff LeMasters stated, “We will continue to vigorously defend the law.”
Jon Youngwood, a partner at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, highlighted the constitutional stakes: “The ruling reaffirms a fundamental constitutional principle: that public schools should not advance or endorse any particular faith.”
The case continues, with families in other districts encouraged to report displays to Americans United at au.org. Act 573 is one of three similar laws challenged nationwide in 2025, following Louisiana’s upheld mandate and ongoing Oklahoma litigation.
