Missouri Rep Demands Public ID of Anyone Suing Over Separation of Church and State

Missouri Representative Hardy Billington (R-Poplar Bluff) is on a mission from God. Unfortunately, it's not the type of mission that requires driving to Chicago at night while wearing sunglasses, but rather one to make the separation of church and state just a bit less separate.

In a House committee hearing Tuesday, Billington presented a bill that would force plaintiffs advocating for the separation of church and state — those suing to stop the public display of crosses on government property, or seeking to block prayer in public schools — to disclose their real names. No more Jane Doe or Jane Roe. In these cases, and only these cases, Billington would require the legal system to out the person suing.

Currently, when it comes to identification, a judge can balance the interests of the public against the interests of the people filing suit. But Billington seems to believe that a new law is necessary to make sure anyone who doesn't share his religious beliefs has no shot at anonymity. "Except if the party in interest is a minor, in any action involving the separation of church and state, such action shall be prosecuted in the name of the real party in interest," his bill states.

During Billington's comments on Tuesday, the freshman representative explained that he'd been inspired to file the bill because of an incident seven years ago, when he erected a ten-foot-tall crucifix that said "Jesus Saves."

Read more: https://www.riverfronttimes.com/newsblog/2019/03/01/missouri-rep-demands-public-id-of-anyone-suing-over-separation-of-church-and-state