When criminal defense attorneys from across Dallas County gather at the courthouse for their annual reading of the Declaration of Independence, the most coveted place in the circle is second.

The person in that spot gets to recite the phrase “all men are created equal,” according to Dallas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association President Alison Grinter.

“It is always sort of the cherry on top,” Grinter said. “That’s the most special part of the declaration I think, and really the part that most Americans cling to. It was true then, just like it is now, but it wasn’t upheld by the laws all the time just like it isn’t now, but we keep working toward that.”

This year’s reading of the 250-year-old document was held Thursday in the lobby of the Frank Crowley Courts Building near downtown Dallas. 

The Dallas defense lawyers’ group is one of more than 200 across the state that assemble before Independence Day each year to read the document aloud at their local courthouse, Grinter said. The tradition began in 2010 in Houston and quickly spread to courthouses throughout the state.

“It’s a beautiful thing,” said Heath Harris, a longtime criminal defense lawyer and former prosecutor. This year, Harris brought his 21-year-old nephew, Anthony Mangram, who was among those taking part in the reading. Mangram said he plans to go to law school and is studying for the Law School Admission Test.

The readings initially were held on the courthouse steps, Grinter said, but were later moved inside. “It’s Texas, so being outside in July isn’t ideal,” she said.

Attorney Ron Goranson said he’s taken part in the readings every year but one. “I think it’s important to know what our beginnings are,” the 80-year-old lawyer said. 

This year the Dallas group arranged for a saxophonist to play “The Star-Spangled Banner” after the reading. A display with historical images was included for the first time, Grinter said. Among them were photos showing times when all were not treated equally, including civil rights icons like Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr., the Tuskegee Airmen and the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II.

“We all go into it every year kind of thinking it’s going to be corny, but then we all leave feeling like it’s a really engaging way to start the holiday,” she said.