By Barbara Hoberock, Oklahoma Voice
OKLAHOMA CITY – A Senate panel on Wednesday killed a bill that sought to return a Ten Commandments monument to the Capitol amid concerns that resurrecting it would violate the will of voters.
The Senate Judiciary Committee voted 3-5 against advancing Senate Bill 380, by Sen. David Bullard, R-Durant. It is very unusual for bills heard in committee not to advance.
Sen. Lisa Standridge, R-Norman, said lawmakers pray before each legislative day.
“Show some courage” and allow the Ten Commandments to be displayed at the Capitol, she said.
Senators in opposition to the measure expressed concerns that it was unconstitutional, would lead to other religious monuments and went against the will of the people.
The measure would have called for a privately funded Ten Commandments monument inside and outside the Capitol.
Any person who knowingly damaged or destroyed the monument would be guilty of a felony.
The Oklahoma Supreme Court in 2015 ruled that a privately funded Ten Commandments monument on the Capitol grounds was religious and had to be removed. State officials spent about $4,700 to remove it to private property nearby.
In 2016, voters resoundingly rejected State Question 790, put on the ballot by lawmakers, that would have allowed the Ten Commandments monument to be displayed at the Capitol.
In 2018, then Gov. Mary Fallin signed a bill that would allow for the Ten Commandments along with other historical documents to be displayed on public property.
