Go To Church Or Go To Jail: Alabama Rejects The Constitution
September 26, 2011
By Justin "Filthy Liberal Scum" Rosario

This court is now in session for our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Repent or be jailed.

In a breathtaking assault on the First Amendment, The town of Bay Minette, Alabama has decided to give non-violent offenders a “choice”: jail time or a year of attending church.

Operation Restore Our Community or “ROC”…begins next week. The city judge will either let misdeamenor offenders work off their sentences in jail and pay a fine or go to church every Sunday for a year.

If offenders elect church, they’re allowed to pick the place of worship, but must check in weekly with the pastor and the police department. If the one-year church attendance program is completed successfully, the offender’s case will be dismissed.

Make no mistake about it. This is a test case to bring before the Supreme Court. The goal here is not to “change the lives of many people heading down the wrong path” as Bay Minette Police Chief Mike Rowland claims. The goal is to circumvent the First Amendment entirely.

According to Chief Rowland:

…the program is legal and doesn’t violate separation of church and state issues because it allows the offender to choose church or jail…and the church of their choice.

If you’ve been following me for a while, this highly dubious line of reasoning should sound disturbingly familiar. I covered this exact legal chicanery back in July:

The Establishment Clause forbids government money to be used to by an organization to evangelize as part of the disbursement of those funds. In other words, if you take government money to feed the hungry, you cannot promote your religion while doing so. Also, under no circumstances, can you withhold services based on your religious beliefs.


Vouchers, on the other hand, eliminate this prickly proselytization problem. The legal argument goes like this: Since the money is not coming directly from the government, all bets are off. By giving the voucher to the “consumer,” the choice of where to spend that money is solely up to them. The Establishment Clause does not apply.

By making it a “choice” the powers that be in this town are looking to set a precedent that would have far reaching ramifications. Much like the repeated attempts of Creationists to force religion into schools, so, too, would this force religion into the courtroom. No doubt the more conservatively religious the judge the more stark the choice will become. Six weeks in jail or one year of church for littering. A $10,000 fine or two years of church for jaywalking. The opportunity for abuse and proselytization become limited only by the fanaticism of the judiciary in a given area.

If you doubt this, ask yourself this: What are the chances a Christian judge would offer the condemned the opportunity to serve their sentence at a Mosque? Yeah, that’s what I thought…

Read more about the latest Right Wing attack on the Constitution here

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http://www.addictinginfo.org/2011/09/26/go-to-church-or-go-to-jail-alabama-rejects-the-constitution/


What dip shytes!

Thinking religion solves anything is the bane to this country.

But yea I bet they are not allowing them the religion of choice or no religion. Technically they should be allowed to go home with no restrictions at all if they are atheist since that is considered a belief too.

Usually liberals are against putting people in jail and whine about how we need options and here's and option and yet liberals still whine and cry

Pretty hard to argue that this is not a case of Government promoting religion. Don't think that conforms with the First Amendment. It's always bad news when renegade Government judges willfully flaunts the Constitution. Well worth complaining about.

Six weeks in jail or one year of church for littering. A $10,000 fine or two years of church for jaywalking. The opportunity for abuse and proselytization become limited only by the fanaticism of the judiciary in a given area.




for some reason this particular line just struck my funny bone - Ima bout in tears laughing

^^^ then I guess I'm more conservative than I thought

I am just cracking up this is hilarious

Some kind of vouchers that they are claiming stop it from being government funded "church probation".

Religion solves nothing, we know this already.

Actually, they are making a choice....in Delaware you can choose boot camp or jail....so why not if they have a choice they arent being forced...

it is not against the constution, they are given a choice... they would be in jail either way, now they have a choice...

With freedom of choice I have found some would still choose jail time to attending meetings. Drug court gives the option to some first offenders rehab or jail. Some choose jail because some see rehab as brain washing. Our hats are off to them. It isn't that big a deal as the church and meetings come to jails any way. America, what a country. Freedom of choice. What a concept.

no doubt the drugs and the sex are far better in jail

and if you've been to a church fish fry lately??? so is the food better in jail no doubt

Since religion doesn't help anything it is a waste of our money anyways but church or go to jail shouldn't be an option in this country.

How is it a waste of our money.....they will go to court....they will have probabtion with a pastor over a probabtion officer reducing their case load....we arent spening anymore money....and I dont think church is a waste of time in a world where no one gets a sense of community unless they are a member of something somewhere.....most people dont live as if in a community anymore....and a sense of belonging remains a good thing....churches have many functions like camp together, instill sense of values, and help members of the community with things like food clothes and bills

Church probation should never exist in this country since we are not the middle east.

Religion fails this country. People just are too scared to let the failure go.

Watching/listening to Snoop and Ice Cube singing "go to church"

Churches have no business in our probation in this country.

Religion should have absolutely nothing to do with sentencing. I can see having them choose from jail or community service, though.

Its not like they have to choose and community service is a sentence imposed.....this isnt an imposed sentence they choose to do so to avoid other court sentencing and record....its a choice not a sentence

Sounds like they're trying to convert people! Why does it not surprise me that the conservatives seem fine with this?

not a conservative btw middle of the road Independent

They aren't trying to convert anybody. They want them to spend a
significant amount of time discussing ethical and moral behavior
for a change. Won't hurt them in the least. Not unconstitutional
either. It's like "community services".



Don't get all sanctimonious.