Court Faults Okla. Ban On Islamic Law

(Wall Street Journal) - A federal appeals court Tuesday upheld a lower-court order blocking an Oklahoma voter-approved law that seeks to invalidate Islamic Sharia law in state judicial matters.

The 10th Circuit US Court of Appeals found in favor of Muneer Awad, a Muslim activist in Oklahoma City, ruling that he was likely to succeed in his claim that the Save Our State amendment violates the First Amendment.

The amendment directs Oklahoma state courts to ignore "legal precepts of other nations or cultures" and specifically forbids consideration of "international law or Sharia Law."

Awad's suit alleges the state law would violate constitutional prohibitions against the establishment of religion or interfering in the free exercise of one's religion. He alleged that the amendment would not only single out his religion for negative treatment, but also inhibit the exercise of his will, which includes Muslim religious law guidelines.

A federal judge in Oklahoma City in November 2010 blocked the state from certifying the amendment shortly after an election in which it passed with 70 percent of the vote.

Lawyers for the state-elections agency argued that the injunction interfered with the state's ability to enforce the voters' will.

In its 37-page ruling, a three-judge appeals court panel said the state law would "discriminate among religions."

The court said backers of the amendment did not "identify any actual problem the challenged amendment seeks to solve. Indeed, they admitted at the preliminary injunction hearing that they did not know of even a single instance where an Oklahoma court had applied Sharia law or used the legal precepts of other nations or cultures, let alone that such applications or uses had resulted in concrete problems in Oklahoma."

Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt said his office "will continue to defend the state in this matter and proceed with the merits of the case."

Awad, who heads the Oklahoma chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said the ruling "is an important reminder that the Constitution is the last line of defense against a rising tide of anti-Muslim bigotry in our society."

Read more: Wall Street Journal