Rice Memorial High School is seen at night. A recent federal appeals court decision regarding a case in Vermont shows the United States Supreme Court is shifting the goalposts of what the Constitution originally deemed precedent, law experts say. Former President Donald Trump appointed a record number of federal judges in his four years in office, and now the US is seeing the effects even here in Vermont. In June 2020, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Free Exercise Clause over the Establishment Clause, which prevents public funds supporting religious activities such as prayer, indoctrination, and worship. This ruling, in Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, led to a federal appeals court reversing a lower court decision involving dual enrollment for a student at Rice Memorial High School. “We have a situation where the federal constitutional law is changing,” said Tom Sullvan, former president of the University of Vermont and professor of Constitutional Law at UVM. “Espinoza kind of changed the law substantially. Under this present Supreme Court, it balances quite strongly in favor of freedom of religion.” Experts say the US Court of Appeals had to side with the Supreme Court, and the Supreme Court in […]
