Texas wins case forcing Galveston school district to display Ten Commandments posters in classrooms

A Texas judge ordered the Galveston Independent School District to display Ten Commandments posters in all classrooms, siding with Attorney General Ken Paxton in a lawsuit over a 2025 state law. The ruling is part of a broader legal battle over religious displays in public schools, with separate challenges pending before the US Supreme Court.

A Texas judge has ordered the Galveston Independent School District to display posters of the Ten Commandments in all classrooms, marking a victory for the state in a legal battle over religious freedom in public education. District Judge Jeth Jones ruled on Thursday that the district must comply within 10 days, while scheduling a non-jury trial for next June. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, had sued the school district last November after the school board voted against exhibiting the Protestant version of the Ten Commandments, arguing the board violated a June 2025 state law, SB10, which required the conspicuous display of such posters. The law is at the center of multiple lawsuits across Texas, including a separate effort led by two rabbis seeking to bring a case to the US Supreme Court. Mara Nathan, senior rabbi at Temple Beth-El in San Antonio, and Joshua Fixler, associate rabbi at Congregation Emanu El in Houston, along with other families, argue the mandatory display is unconstitutional and infringes on religious freedom. Their petition, filed in August, asks the high court to weigh in. The US Court of Appeals for the 5th District ruled in April 2026 that the law does not violate the First Amendment. The article notes similar laws in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Alabama.