An act of vandalism has Rockwall County leaders taking action to protect a monument outside their historic courthouse.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The monument displaying the Ten Commandments has been controversial since it was installed back in May.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It’s a standalone marble headstone that was unanimously approved by the Rockwall County Commissioners Court. It features the Ten Commandments etched in English and Hebrew.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was funded with $20,000 in private funding and was exactly what County Commissioner Lorne Liechty thought the town square needed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“Really, we were inspired by what was down at the state capitol,” Liechty said.<\/p>\n
Liechty says the monument was vandalized by someone with an unknown substance.\u00a0 <\/p>\n
“It looked like somebody had taken something that squirted out here and it drained down the monument and discolored it,” said Liechty. “It was very disappointing, not just because it’s defacing a public monument, but because our community has been so supportive of it.”<\/p>\n
Liechty was able to contact a county work crew, which cleaned and restored the monument while authorities continue to investigate who is responsible.\u00a0<\/p>\n
An organization called the Freedom From Religion Foundation has openly opposed the monument, writing in a letter to the county back in May, saying:<\/p>\n
“Unlike the decades-old Texas Capitol monument at issue in that case, the Rockwall display is a newly installed, stand-alone religious monument placed at a courthouse in an overtly religious context.”<\/p>\n
Rockwall County replied with a letter of its own, saying:<\/p>\n
“…the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution takes no issue with passive, religious displays like the County’s Ten Commandments monument, which comport with ‘historical practices and understandings.'”<\/p>\n
“You know this was never meant to be a divisive thing,” Liechty said. “It’s meant to be a unifying thing, and it has been for a community. I just hope it never happens again.”<\/p>\n
Liechty says the county is taking steps to better protect the sculpture, which he says sustained no permanent damage.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“It looks beautiful,” he said. “I think it looks beautiful.”<\/p>\n
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