Judge delays ruling on monolith for city

The way in which the city of Duchesne disposed of its Ten Commandments monument is constitutionally problematic, a federal judge said Wednesday.

From 1979 until last summer, the monolith sat on a 10-foot-by-11-foot plot of public land inside the city's Roy Park. Anticipating a legal challenge, city officials deeded the piece of property to the Duchesne Lions Club.

Of particular interest to U.S. District Judge Dee Benson is the fact that Duchesne Mayor Clint Park is also the president of the Lions Club, his signature appears twice on the property transfer and the sale involved no transfer of money.

"In looking at this from a big-picture standpoint, it does appear to me that the (city) has problems . . . with the way this was done," the judge said.

That said, Benson isn't ready to make a final ruling allowing Summum, a Salt Lake City-based religious group, to erect a similarly sized monolith in the park espousing its beliefs. He asked attorneys for both sides to file additional briefs on several issues key to his decision.

Summum sued Duchesne in November after city leaders denied its request for a plot of land to display its Seven Aphorisms.

Summum attorney Brian Barnard has asked Benson to issue a preliminary injunction against Duchesne, which would allow his clients to erect their monument while the lawsuit is pending. Summum founder Corky Ra said Wednesday his monument could be ready just six weeks after Benson gives his approval.

Among the things Benson wants addressed is whether he has the authority to suggest ways Duchesne could make the land transfer more appropriate, such as undoing the original transaction and putting the piece of land up for public auction. The monument could then remain, and it could be made clear through signs or fencing that the land is not owned by the city.

A similar approach worked with a controversial statue of Jesus Christ in Marshfield, Wis.

---

E-mail: awelling@desnews.com