Bremerton coach takes praying case to the Supreme Court

Joe Kennedy was fired for silently praying after Bremerton High School football games. He sued, lost, and then lost again in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Now, Kennedy is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to get involved.

Michael Berry, the deputy general counsel for the First Liberty Institute representing Kennedy, says the 9th Circuit’s decision was “pretty far reaching and outrageous.” He tells KTTH Radio’s Jason Rantz that the ruling prevents public school employees from engaging in any type of religious activity in public view.

You can read the opinion from the Court of Appeals here.

This has essentially become a First Amendment case. It questions whether or not public school employees retain any rights while they are working or in the presence of students, the Associated Press reports.

Berry says the timing of the petition to the Supreme Court is not related to justices’ decision to send the Arlene’s Flowers case back to the lower court. Kennedy’s case aims to clarify what rights public employees have when they are on the clock.

Listen to the entire conversation here.

Follow @https://twitter.com/jasonrantz