ACLU of N.C. & Syidah Matteen V. State of North Carolina - ACLU Involvement

ACLU Involvement

The North Carolina chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union became involved when on On June 28, 2005 they called on the AOC to "adopt a policy allowing the use of the Quran and other religious texts for the swearing of oaths in court proceedings." When on July 14, 2005 the state Administrative Office of the Courts declined to intervene (indicating "that either the legislature or a court ruling would have to decide this question") the ACLU took the issue to court”. In July 2005 they argued in court that "the term 'Holy Scriptures' appearing in the statute refers not only to the Christian Bible, but also to other religious texts including, but not limited to, the Quran, the Old Testament, and the Bhagavad-Gita." The ACLU argued that since in 1985 “the term ‘Gospels’ was eliminated from the section and the terms ‘Holy Evangelists of Almighty God’ was changed to ‘Holy Scriptures,’ the message sent by the Legislature was clear: no longer would the Christian Bible be the only religious text which could be used in a swearing ceremony. Stated differently, the term ‘Holy Scriptures’ is broad enough to include the Quran.” The state attorney general's office argued in court papers that the ACLU lacked the right to sue because there is no controversy between them and the state of North Carolina. This led them to add Muslim Syidah Mateen as a plaintiff on November 29, 2005.