Judges hear new pledge challenge

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. 4 (UPI) -- A federal appeals court in California Tuesday appeared divided over the latest legal challenge to the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools.

A three-judge panel of the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard the case of Sacramento atheist Michael Newdow, who argues that the pledge in schools is unconstitutional because it contains the phrase "under God," The Mercury News of San Jose, Calif., reported Tuesday.

"This is not a case of people who believe in God versus people who don't believe in God," Newdow told the judges. "It's a case about treating people equally."

The same three-judge panel also Tuesday considered a separate case brought by Newdow challenging the "In God We Trust" motto on U.S. currency.

Five years ago, the 9th Circuit ruled on behalf of the emergency room physician and attorney, striking down the pledge in public schools in his case against the Elk Grove Unified School District in 2000.

The U.S. Supreme Court, however, two years later nullified the ruling on the grounds that Newdow did not have custody of his elementary school daughter, on behalf of whom he filed the challenge.

In the latest case, the Bush administration and the Rio Linda Unified School District appealed a district court's ruling, maintaining that the judge in the case erred by relying on a ruling that had been overturned by the Supreme Court.