M05_ Legal Memorandum
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School
Ivy Tech Community College, Indianapolis *
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Course
101
Subject
Philosophy
Date
Dec 6, 2023
Type
docx
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4
Uploaded by MateDolphin3791
Jennea Jackson
Professor Angela Traycoff
LEGS 101
24 September 2023
M05: Legal Memorandum
To: Supervising Attorney
From: Research Assistant
Date: September 24, 2023
Re:
Whether The Holmes Middle School must allow The Joy and Faith Club to use its facilities
Facts
Our client, Holmes Middle School, was sent a request by The Joy and Faith Club to allow access
to the campus facilities after school. The Joy and Faith Club is a Christian fellowship group. The
group is geared toward children ages nine to fifteen. The activities proposed are lectures on
“leading a moral life,” bible readings, and scripture interpretations. School administrators believe
this use of the school’s facilities may violate the district’s policy prohibiting the equivalent of
religious worship.
Issue
Does this infringe on The Joy and Faith Club rights based upon the First Amendment?
Discussion
A.
Introduction
The Holmes Middle School was sent a request to allow The Joy and Faith Club to hold
meetings afterschool. The district has a policy on prohibiting the equivalent of religious
Jennea Jackson
Professor Angela Traycoff
LEGS 101
24 September 2023
worship. This is to keep religion from being forced on to students, who are more
impressionable than adults. Is Holmes Middle School violating The Establishment Clause
in any way? A similar issue was addressed in
Good News Club v. Milford Cent. Sch., 533
U.S. 98, 121 S. Ct. 2093 (2001)
.
B
. Establishment Clause
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the
free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the
people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Holmes Middle School is not in violation of this clause as the meetings would be held after
school. However, if prohibited access to the usage of campus facilities could then lead to a
violation.
C
.
Good News Club v. Milford
In the case of
Good News Club v. Milford Cent. Sch., 533 U.S. 98, 121 S. Ct. 2093
(2001)
, A New York state statute,
opened the district's school building to public use for purposes
including (1) instruction in any branch of education, learning, or the arts; (2) social, civic, and
recreational meetings; and (3) other uses pertaining to the welfare of the community. However,
the policy provided that school premises were not to be used by any individual or organization
for religious purposes. The Good News Club, which a Christian based group, wanted to use the
school cafeteria to hold meetings. Their targeted audience being children ages six to twelve. In
those meetings they would teach morals and character development to children from a religious
standpoint through storytelling and prayer. Access was denied to the Christian club on grounds of
Jennea Jackson
Professor Angela Traycoff
LEGS 101
24 September 2023
equivalent religious worship. It would later be decided that the school was infringing on the
rights of The Good New Club. The right being freedom of speech.
D
. Violation of The First Amendment
In
Good News Club v. Milford Cent. Sch., 533 U.S. 98, 121 S. Ct. 2093 (2001)
, it was
decided that
Milford
was violating the rights of
The Good News Club
. The club would be
meeting after school to not interfere during school hours. Its targeted audience would need a
signed permission slip from a parent to be able to participate in the club. A school district's
exclusion of a religious club from meeting in the district's school building after school hours
constitutes viewpoint discrimination in violation of the free speech guarantee of the Federal
Constitution’s First Amendment, where (1) a district policy opens the school building to public
use for purposes including (a) instruction in any branch of education, learning, or the arts, (b)
social, civic, and recreational meetings, and (c) other uses pertaining to the welfare of the
community; (2) any group that promotes the moral and character development of children is thus
eligible to use the school building; (3) the club, a private Christian organization for children
between the ages of 6 and 12, teaches morals and character development to children from a
religious standpoint through storytelling and prayer; (4) the club's activities do not constitute
mere religious worship that is divorced from any teaching of moral values; (5) there is no reason
to treat the club's use of religion as something other than a viewpoint merely because of any
evangelical message that the club conveys; and (6) for purposes of the free speech guarantee,
there is no logical difference in kind between (a) the club's invocation of Christianity, and (b) the
invocation of teamwork, loyalty, or patriotism by other associations to provide a foundation for
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Jennea Jackson
Professor Angela Traycoff
LEGS 101
24 September 2023
such associations' lessons.
E
. Conclusion
In conclusion, it would be in the parties best interest to allow access to The Joy and Faith Club.
By not doing so, it would result in court proceedings. With the information given above the
outcome would likely side with the Christian Club. As it did in the case of
Good News Club v.
Milford.