Judge says Jesus icon may stay in La. courthouse

SLIDELL, La. — A portrait of Jesus may remain on a courthouse wall with portraits of 15 other historical figures and a copy of the U.S. Constitution, a federal judge ruled Sept. 7. U.S. District Judge Ivan L.R. Lemelle in New Orleans said he likely would have granted a request by the Louisiana American Civil Liberties Union to remove the portrait as a violation of the First Amendment and the separation of church and state. But Lemelle said he chose to allow the display after court officials expanded it to include nonreligious figures. The expanded display now includes Confucius, Hammurabi, Charlemagne, Octavian, John Marshall and others in common with the friezes at the U.S. Supreme Court. The high court’s friezes, however, do not include Jesus.