H.S. Football Coach That Took Pro-Prayer Case To Supreme Court Finally Receives Return Date
A high school football coach banned after refusing to end on-field prayers with his players has finally received a return date. The news comes after a seven-year legal battle by Kennedy to be reinstated — a case that went up all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Bremerton football coach Joseph Kennedy — a devout Christian — was let go by his school district for actively praying with his players after football games.
SUPREME COURT REVIEWING COACH’S SUSPENSION FOR ON-FIELD PRAYERS
Kennedy's fight represented a sect of America vying for the protection of traditionally Christian values amid the nation's ongoing rejection of religious principles.
A court document unveiled Tuesday approved Kennedy for an official return to Bremerton's football program "on or before March 15, 2023"— capping a near-seven-year-long battle to reclaim his position as head coach.
"The joint stipulation filed Tuesday indicates that the parties in the case have agreed that Kennedy must be reinstated to his previous position on or before March 15, 2023," reported NBC King5.
The coach will also be receiving back pay for the time missed.
"The filing includes language that Kennedy is entitled to declaratory relief consistent with the Supreme Court's opinion in this case, and that Bremerton School District 'shall not interfere with or prohibit Kennedy from offering a prayer consistent with the Supreme Court's opinion,'" the report added.
Kennedy's school district opted not to re-sign him to a new contract in 2015, noting the controversy over his prayer circles as reasonable grounds. The coach responded by filing a lawsuit against the school district asking for his reinstatement.
Bremerton football coach Joseph Kennedy
Former Washington State Attorney General Rob McKenna said the following on Kennedy's appeal.
“To be clear, the issue here was not students on their own getting together and praying, in this case football payers,” McKenna said. “It was that the coach encouraged them to gather at the center of the field after games ended to offer a silent or quiet prayer.”
After a district court ruled against Kennedy's request, he took the case up to the Supreme Court where he received a 6-3 vote in his favor. Justice Neil Gorsuch delivered his thoughts on the case.
“The Constitution and the best of our traditions counsel mutual respect and tolerance, not censorship and suppression, for religious and nonreligious views alike,” Gorsuch said.
