Summum, the religious organization which has enjoyed a string of successes in the Tenth Circuit (see Summum Wins Again (and Again)), was handed a defeat in the United States Supreme Court. In Pleasant Grove City, Utah v. Summum (No. 07-665) the Court unanimously (but with four concurring opinions) reversed the Tenth Circuit and held that:
Although a park is a traditional public forum for speeches and other transitory expressive acts, the display of a permanent monument in a public park is not a form of expression to which forum analysis applies. Instead, the placement of a permanent monument in a public park is best viewed as a form of government speech and is therefore not subject to scrutiny under the Free Speech Clause.
Accordingly, the Court held that Summum could not require the City of Pleasant Grove to permit Summum to place a monument in a city park containing other donated monuments.
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