Public Sector Case Notes

JurisdictionUnited States,Federal
AuthorJ. Scott Tiedemann
Publication year2022
CitationVol. 36 No. 5
PUBLIC SECTOR CASE NOTES

AUTHORS*

J. Scott Tiedemann

Brian R. Dierzé

PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL COACH HAS RIGHT TO PRAY AT THE 50-YARD LINE

Kennedy v. Bremerton School District, 142 S. Ct. 2407 (2022)

The U.S. Supreme Court held 6-3 that Joseph Kennedy, a public high school football coach, had a First Amendment right to pray at the 50-yard line at the conclusion of games.

Kennedy coached high school football at the Bremerton School District in Washington state. Kennedy stated that his Christian religious beliefs required him to give thanks through prayer at the end of each game by kneeling at the 50-yard line. Because Kennedy's religious beliefs required that his prayer occur on the field immediately after the game concluded, spectators, including students, parents, and community members, would observe Kennedy's religious conduct. While Kennedy initially prayed alone, a group of District players asked if they could join him. Over time, the group grew to include most of the team.

The District first learned that Kennedy was praying on the field in September 2015, when an opposing team's coach told the District's principal that Kennedy had asked his team to join him in prayer on the field. The athletic director then spoke with Kennedy and expressed disapproval. In response, Kennedy posted on Facebook that "I think I just might have been fired for praying." The District was then flooded with e-mails, letters, and telephone calls from around the country regarding Kennedy's prayer.

The District's discovery of Kennedy's prayers prompted an inquiry into whether Kennedy was complying with the District's Religious-Related Activities and Practices policy. That policy directed school staff to neither encourage nor discourage a student from non-disruptive oral or silent prayer or other devotional activity. The District's investigation revealed that the coaching staff received little training regarding this policy, so the Superintendent sent Kennedy a letter advising him that he could continue to give inspirational talks, but they must remain entirely secular in nature. The Superintendent also noted that: religious activity needed to be entirely student-initiated; Kennedy's actions could not be perceived as an endorsement of that activity; and that while Kennedy was free to engage in religious activity, it could not interfere with his job responsibilities and must be physically separate from any student activity. This directive prompted Kennedy to temporarily pray after everyone else had left the stadium. However, he soon returned to his practice of praying immediately after games. The District received no further reports of Kennedy praying on the field, so it believed he was complying with its directive.

On October 14, 2015, Kennedy wrote a letter to the District through his lawyer announcing he would resume praying on the 50-yard line immediately after the October 16, 2015 football game. Kennedy and his representatives publicized Kennedy's intention to pray on the field, and the District arranged to secure the field from public access. Following the game, Kennedy prayed with a large gathering of coaches and players around him. Members of the public also jumped the fence to join him, resulting in a stampede.

On October 23, 2015, the District sent Kennedy a letter explaining that his conduct violated District policy. When the District offered Kennedy a private location to pray after games or suggested that he pray after the stadium had emptied, Kennedy responded that the only acceptable outcome would be for the District to permit him to pray on the 50-yard line immediately after games. Kennedy continued to violate District directives. The District then placed Kennedy on paid administrative...

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