BALTIMORE (AP) - The plaintiffs in a public prayer dispute are dropping their request for a federal judge in Baltimore to reinstate his order barring the Carroll County Commissioners from opening their meetings with invocations mentioning Jesus Christ.
Lawyers for the Washington-based American Humanist Association said in a filing recorded Monday that they withdrew the motion to save court time. They say they plan to file a motion for summary judgment, asking the judge to decide the matter without a full-blown trial.
The U.S. District Court judge lifted the injunction May 8 after the U.S. Supreme Court approved of clergy invoking specific deities in opening prayers at government meetings.
The ruling didn't specifically address Carroll County's practice of having opening prayers said by the elected commissioners themselves.
