Donnelly v. Lynch

OPINION AND ORDER *

PETTINE, Chief Judge.

The First Amendment of the United States Constitution begins, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” By incorporation through the Due Process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, Abington School District v. Schempp, 374 U.S. 203, 215-16, 83 S.Ct. 1560, 1567-68, 10 L.Ed.2d 844 (1967), this prohibition against official support of, and affiliation with, religious philosophies and institutions applies as well to the actions of state and local governments. In this case, the Court must decide whether the City of Pawtucket’s…