States can continue to invoke harsher punishments for people who vandalize places of worship than for those convicted of other types of vandalism, the Supreme Court declared this week.
By refusing to hear an appeal of a Florida case, the high court upheld a state law allowing for stricter punishments when places of worship are vandalized.
The American Jewish Congress, which filed a friend of the court brief supporting the state, welcomed the decision.
“The challenged statute violates neither the Establishment Clause nor the equal protection provisions of the U.S. and Florida constitutions,” said AJCongress President David Kahn.
Under the Establishment Clause, which serves as the basis for the separation of church and state, the government can make no laws favoring a particular religion.
Two Florida men who were convicted of spray painting anti – religious sentiments on three churches challenged a state statute making it a felony to deface religious buildings, such as churches, synagogues and mosques.
Jason Todd and Joseph Huchinson, who were sentenced to 15 years’ probation, argued that the law was unconsitutional.
Under the Florida statute, the maximum penalty for vandalizing houses of worship is five years in prison.
The court’s refusal to hear the cases, Todd vs. State of Florida, and Huchinson vs. State of Florida, upholds a 1994 Florida 1st District of Appeals ruling.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
