spotify pixel

Court rejects baseless Ariz. First Amendment case stemming from FFRF complaint

Peoria Unified Newsroom / Logos and Brand Guidelines

A federal judge has ruled that a school board member in Arizona cannot sue her district over warnings she received for reciting bible verses at board meetings after the Freedom From Religion Foundation complained.

The case arises from May 2023, when FFRF and the Secular Coalition for Arizona requested Peoria (Ariz.) Unified School District to halt board member Heather Rooks’ quotations from the bible at every board meeting. The board’s attorney agreed with the secular organizations’ analysis and advised that the bible quotations subjected the board to legal liability. Rooks filed a federal suit in September in the U.S. District Court of Arizona against her own school district, contending that her free speech rights were being curtailed. Rooks is represented by the First Liberty Institute, a Christian theocratic organization.

FFRF and the Secular Coalition for Arizona attempted to file an amicus brief in the case. The motion was unopposed, but U.S. District Judge Michael Liburdi denied FFRF’s motion. Ironically, Liburdi reached the same conclusion that FFRF advocated for in its rejected brief.

FFRF maintained that the case could not proceed because there was no actual case or controversy to adjudicate. Rooks was asking the court to issue an advisory opinion. A plaintiff must have suffered an actual injury-in-fact for a case or controversy to exist, but FFRF and Secular AZ emphasized that Rooks cannot point to a single official action taken by the board that has injured her. The board has neither prevented Rooks from performing her duties nor taken legal action against her. She complains of legal advice from the board’s attorney, but receiving legal advice from one’s own counsel does not constitute an injury. She complains of comments she received in response to her continued bible readings, but such comments do not constitute official action by the board.

Judge Liburdi wrote, “The language in the emails suggest their intent was to provide legal advice to board members, and the warnings the emails contained did not suggest PUSD was planning on taking any action against Rooks.” Instead, the emails warned that third parties, such as FFRF or the Arizona attorney general, could take action against Rooks or the district. “As such, the legal advice provided in the emails is not a type of government action that arguably could have chilled Rooks’ First Amendment expression,” Liburdi stated.

The Peoria Unified School District acted appropriately to protect its interests. FFRF’s original letter in 2023 called attention to the district’s responsibility to uphold the rights of all community members and avoid unnecessary legal and financial risks:

“If board members continue to impose religion on those in attendance, it will subject the school district to unnecessary liability and potential financial strain. When FFRF secured a court order against a California school district regarding its school board prayers, the court ordered the district to pay more than $200,000 in the plaintiffs’ attorney fees and costs. After appeal, the court ordered the district to pay an additional $75,000 for plaintiffs’ attorney fees and costs associated with the appeal for a total of more than a quarter million dollars.”

Rooks has announced that she intends to appeal to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

“We respect every individual’s right to religious freedom, including Ms. Rooks’ right to practice her faith separately from her government position,” says FFRF Co-President Dan Barker. “However, when acting as a public official, personal religious expression cannot override the constitutional duty to remain neutral on religion.”

The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a national nonprofit organization with more than 40,000 members and several chapters across the country, including more than 1,000 members and a chapter in Arizona. Our purposes are to protect the constitutional principle of separation between state and church, and to educate the public on matters relating to nontheism.

Freedom From Religion Foundation

Send this to a friend