Man in 10 Commandments Case Fears for Safety After Paper Prints Name

By: (AP) The man at the center of a challenge to remove a Ten Commandments monument displayed in a public park said he feared for his safety after a newspaper revealed his name Sunday.

The Omaha World-Herald in its Sunday editions identified the man, an atheist, who brought the suit against the city of Plattsmouth in 2001 with the help of the American Civil Liberties Union.

Last September, a federal judge declined a request from the ACLU to stop the paper from naming the man, whom the Associated Press is not identifying.

On Sunday, the man said in a statement released through the ACLU that he regretted the paper's decision to release his name and would continue to fear for his safety in the town just south of Omaha.

"I hope the work of local law enforcement, coupled with the warning of federal investigations, will dissuade those who have an irrational hatred of me," the man said. "While most of the people in Plattsmouth are good neighbors, I must be concerned about those who are not."

Tim Butz, director of the Nebraska ACLU, said the organization shared the man's concerns for his safety and has met with state and local law enforcement authorities. The ACLU would not comment on any of the measures taken to guard the man's safety, Butz said.

The Omaha World-Herald would make no other comment than the story it published Sunday, said Larry King, executive editor. The article did not say why the paper decided to publish the story.

"The story speaks for itself," King said in a statement released by the paper.

Besides identifying the man, the story also listed the type of car he drives and his license plate, which is related to his atheist affiliation. The story detailed his personal and professional life and quoted co-workers. Some of the man's writing on religion and Christianity were also quoted as were depositions in which he detailed threats made against him and his family.

Last year the man said he would consider moving from Plattsmouth, should his name be revealed, because his life had been threatened.

The suit alleges the monument violates the First Amendment and Supreme Court rulings on the separation of church and state. The monument has been in the city park since 1965.

At trial, the judge agreed with the ACLU, saying the monument "conveys a message that Christianity and Judaism are favored religions." The ruling was appealed, and is before the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Before trial, a federal magistrate granted the ACLU's request to let the case continue without naming the man because of the threats made against him. The order applied only to the lawyers and those involved in the case. The ACLU had asked the judge to extend the order beyond the courtroom.

AT the time, an attorney for the World-Herald argued that sealed evidence presented to the court showed the man's identity was already known.

Last week the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that Ten Commandment displays in two Kentucky courthouses cross the line between separation of church and state.

But in a second 5-4 ruling, the high court held it was constitutionally permissible to display the Ten Commandments on the grounds of the Texas Capitol.