A former Washington state public high school football coach has lost his latest court battle over his right to lead prayers on the gridiron after games.
We first wrote about the case of former Bremerton High School assistant coach Joseph Kennedy back in October 2015. At the time, the school district put Kennedy on paid administrative leave. The district didn’t agree with Coach Kennedy’s practice of leading voluntary prayer on a publicly owned football field.
Back then, Kennedy's lawyers said they planned to go to court. And nearly two years later, the case has made it to the federal Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals after Kennedy lost in the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington.
On Wednesday, the three-judge Ninth Circuit appeals court panel upheld the lower court’s decision against Kennedy, who sought an injunction against the school district seeking his reinstatement as a coach and the resumption of his prayer practice after his reinstatement.
The appeals court decision stated that Kennedy didn’t apply for a coaching position for the 2016 season after the team’s head coach left. The school athletic director also recommended that Kennedy not be rehired, said the court documents.
Kennedy’s attorneys filed suit in the Western District in August 2016. He claimed his rights under the First Amendment and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 were violated.
The lower court denied the injunction request because it believed Kennedy as a public employee fell under the school district’s policy rights to ensure the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause was respected and that the district wasn’t advocating a religion.
The Ninth Circuit appeals court panel agreed on Wednesday.
“By kneeling and praying on the fifty-yard line immediately after games while in view of students and parents, Kennedy was sending a message about what he values as a coach, what the District considers appropriate behavior, and what students should believe, or how they ought to behave,” the appeals court concluded. “Because such demonstrative communication fell well within the scope of Kennedy’s professional obligations, the constitutional significance of Kennedy’s job responsibilities is plain—he spoke as a public employee, not as a private citizen, and his speech was therefore unprotected.”
The First Liberty Institute, which helped in Kennedy’s legal representation, told the Seattle Times on Wednesday that it was disappointed and considering its options, including a Supreme Court appeal.
Scott Bomboy is the editor in chief of the National Constitution Center.
