CC 11/09/2015 Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

CASSELBERRY CITY COMMISSION Minutes of November 9, 2015 — Regular Meeting Page 11 of 19 explained that many cities had been reviewing their invocation policies subsequent to the Supreme Court decision in Town of Greece vs. Galloway, and in light of the litigious society of today, most of those cities' attorneys had recommended a moment of silence, perhaps coupled with non - sectarian remarks to send a positive message or allow for reflection, as the safest course to follow. She added that the City of Casselberry had always enjoyed a time of reflection and positive contemplation at the beginning of meetings which was in accordance with the Supreme Court's ruling that prayer in public meetings should not be for the purpose of violating the First Amendment or denigrating anyone's religious beliefs. However, she added that there were cities and counties that had been sued over this issue, and in the case of Town of Greece had gone to the Supreme Court, and there was always that risk. She noted that if the City were sued, it would be possible the plaintiff could recover attorneys' fees, and the case would be in the federal court, which would be very expensive. Ms. Reischmann advised that many of the cities in the area had already moved to a moment of silence, including Altamonte Springs, Winter Park, Lake Mary and Orlando, and they sometimes coupled those with non - sectarian remarks, but there were also other alternatives, such as implementing a policy of rotation amongst established assemblies in the area. She noted that with this option there would be the risk of opening it up to established assemblies that could possibly be offensive to some. She again reiterated that the safest course would be a moment of silence, and if was the Commission's desire, the City could proceed in that direction since there was nothing written in the current agenda policy. However, if the consensus was to move to a policy similar to that of the Town of Greece with a rotation of established assemblies presenting a prayer at the meetings, she would need additional time to prepare a proposed policy and bring it back to the Commission for consideration. Discussion: A lengthy discussion ensued regarding whether to open the meetings with a moment of silent meditation or a prayer led by various religious organizations; the risks involved in opening the meeting to allow presentation of prayers by all established religious organizations in the City; the logistics of maintaining a list to accommodate such a rotation; and the use of staff time to implement and maintain the policy. Vice Mayor Solomon and Commissioners Aramendia and Meadows were in support of a moment of silence as the safest course of action for the City, while Mayor Glancy and Commissioner Hufford indicated they would like to continue the City's longstanding practice of prayer, and would like to implement a policy to allow rotation of established religious organizations to present the prayer at the meetings. Mr. Newlon advised that the Commission needed to decide as a body whether to develop a policy to preserve prayer in the meetings, or move towards a moment of silence being the standard procedure for meeting openings, and if the decision was to preserve prayer, staff could work to develop a policy which would include language to protect the City from potential litigation. Ms. Reischmann reminded the Commission that the City could not make judgments about various religions, and any speakers could be asked to adhere to the City's policies relating to not making any offensive remarks; however, the City would actually have no control over what would actually be spoken. Mr. Newlon stated that what was needed from the Commission was a consensus from the Commission on whether to have a moment of silence at the start of meetings or to develop a policy to include prayer from various religious organizations. He added that due to the legal complexities of the issue, the details of any proposed policy should not be discussed in this venue, but possibly in a workshop setting. Commissioner Meadows indicated he would be willing to see how a policy implementing a rotation for prayer would work, but felt a statistical study should be done to make sure the religions within the City were equally represented. Ms. Reischmann reiterated that guidelines could be given to the prayer givers; however, the City could not edit or control what was said.