10/1/2006 - October 2006 Newsletter

SOUTHEAST LAW INSTITUTE™ 1200 Corporate Drive, Suite 107 Highway 280 - Meadow Brook Corporate Park Birmingham, Alabama 35242 Telephone: (205) 408-8893 E-mail: AEJ@SoutheastlawInstitute.org Facsimile: (205) 408-8894 www.southeastlawinstitute.org October 2006 Dear Friends and Supporters, With the beginning of the school year, we have had more incidents of attempted abridgment of religious freedom by public school authorities. We earlier reported that there were some problems with students transferring credits from church schools to public schools. The State Department of Education has looked into that and we have not received further complaints. That is not to say certain problems may still exist and in which we will be interested. Also, we have written letters to two county boards of education who have attempted to require church schools to submit information to the state about who and what they are. Our response has been that the state has no right to harass church schools. Only if there is probable cause that a church school is not actually in existence and that students are truant would there be a basis for such a demand. We hope we have adequately explained this to those boards of education and if there are others of which anyone is aware, we encourage you to contact us so that we may protect the parental, student and free exercise of religion rights that are involved in education. We are glad to report the Alabama Department of Public Health (“ADPH”) has issued proposed revised regulations for abortion clinics. Those proposals are being put out for public comment and there will be a public hearing, perhaps in November. This month’s Educational Update summarizes some of the proposals by the ADPH. We were not entirely happy with the ADPH permitting a Montgomery abortion clinic to re-open. It had been determined that, among a number of egregious omissions, the clinic did not have a physician who could admit patients to a local hospital in the event of an emergency. A consent agreement was entered into by the clinic and the ADPH that the clinic would be in compliance with all requirements and that if it was not, it would forfeit its hearing, thereby permitting the clinic to be closed. We will be encouraging the ADPH to monitor that clinic carefully and will insist on taking quick and effective action to close that clinic in the event it does not comply. Please remember us with your contributions. Attached to this letter is a tear-off and there is enclosed an envelope. Please make as generous a contribution as you can. We encourage you to consider your end-of-year giving and include the Southeast Law Institute. We are always grateful for your support. Yours very truly, A. Eric Johnston AEJ/pmm

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