Supreme Court Ruling (April 24, 2001)

Case Syllabus (Summary). (Requires free Adobe Acrobat reader).

Majority Opinion (Scalia).

Minority Opinion (Stevens).

These materials can also be found at Cornell's Supreme Court collection.

Supreme Court Hearing (January 16, 2001)

Complete Transcript of the oral argument.

Associated Press story (January 16, 2001).

Reuters story (January 16, 2001).

Christian Science Monitor"Court Lends Ear on 'English Only'" (January 15, 2001).

Supreme Court agrees to hear appeal (Associated Press, September 26, 2000).

Case History

English First Foundation legal brief (also avaialble in Adobe Acrobat format -12 minute download time) asking the Supreme Court to overrule the Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit (filed on July 14, 2000 along with English Language Advocates.) (Abobe Acrobat version requires free Adobe Acrobat reader).

U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit upholds DeMint's ruling that language choice is a protected civil right.

Department of Justice Brief supporting DeMent's ruling (January 11, 1999).

Alabama Judge Ira DeMent finds a Constitutional right to get a driver's license for non-English speakers (June 3, 1998).

The full text of the 200+ page DeMent opinion can be downloaded as either a text or as a ".zip" file.

Southern Poverty Law Center Coverage of the case. The SPLC filed the complaint in December, 1996.

Alabama judge issues final federal order in school-prayer case.

Full text of his ruling on school prayer.

ACLU Press Release Nov. 13, 1997.

American Athiests Press Release.

Alabama Government Memo on Permitted Religious Activities.