ADF attorney available to media after hearing on Mo. ‘Choose Life’ plates
Two state senators set roadblock to keep pro-life group from offering license platesWHO: ADF Senior Legal Counsel Joel Oster
WHAT: Available for media interviews after hearing in Roach v. Davis
WHEN: Thursday, Oct. 16, immediately following hearing, which begins at 9 a.m. CDT
WHERE: U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit, Thomas F. Eagleton Courthouse, 111 S. 10th St., Division I, Floor 28, En Banc Courtroom, St. Louis
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Alliance Defense Fund Senior Legal Counsel Joel Oster will be available for media interviews following oral arguments before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit in a lawsuit over Missouri’s “Choose Life” license plates.
“Pro-life organizations shouldn’t be discriminated against for their beliefs,” said Oster. “Rejecting Choose Life’s participation in the specialty license plate program just because government officials in high places object to the message is simply unconstitutional.”
In June 2006, ADF attorneys filed suit against Missouri Department of Revenue officials after two Missouri senators - both members of a committee responsible for reviewing the specialty plate applications - objected to the viewpoint of the message on a license plate proposed by Choose Life of Missouri.
Earlier this year, a federal court ruled in favor of Choose Life, determining that the state’s statute outlining the approval process for specialty plates was unconstitutional (www.telladf.org/news/story.aspx?cid=4366). The state appealed the ruling to the 8th Circuit, which refused to stay the district court’s decision while the case is on appeal.
The plate in dispute can be viewed at www.chooselifemissouri.org. All proceeds from the plate go to adoption centers and battered women shelters throughout Missouri.
A fact sheet on the lawsuit Roach v. Davis is available at www.telladf.org/UserDocs/RoachFactSheet.pdf.
ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.
