TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Azya Thornton on Jun 26, 2026

A federal judge ruled in 2002 that Rutherford County's display of the Ten Commandments in its courthouse violated the First Amendment because it advanced a religious purpose. Now, a new Ten Commandments display has been installed in the renovated Civil War-era Rutherford County Courthouse, the Tennessean reports. Former Mayor Bill Ketron said the display is permitted under a Tennessee law allowing historical displays of the commandments, while the plaintiff in the original lawsuit argues the new display also violates the U.S. Constitution. The renewed dispute comes as state lawmakers recently passed a new law allowing local school boards to consider displaying the Ten Commandments in public schools.