1977 Indiana Creationist textbook case online

Old familiar arguments, same result.

Talk Origins posted the opinion in Hendren v. Campbell, a 1977 Indiana State court opinion rejecting the adoption of a creation science textbook.  Who cares what some Indiana trial court said almost 30 years ago?

These decisions are important for historical reasons to demonstrate that ID makes the same previously rejected creationist decisions. The ID arguments in Kitzmiller are the same ones rejected by the Indiana court in 1977.

A short civics lesson follows on the importance of any particular court decision. Court decisions are of varying importance. As a general rule, the decision is strictly binding only on the involved parties. In some circumstances, the decision may have broader precedential value by setting out an established rule to be followed by future courts.

Determining the binding effect or "precedential value of a decision can be a little complicated in our federal system. A U.S. Supreme Court decision is “binding precedent" on all courts that apply U.S. law or U.S. Constitutional law. The opinion of the highest court of a state has binding precedent on all courts applying the law of that state. Sometimes this includes federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court. Federal courts often apply the law of a particular state to a decision. If so, those federal courts are bound by the decisions of that state’s highest court.

The precedential value of a decision should not be confused with the decision’s persuasive authority. A persuasive decision involving a brilliant application of legal analysis to the facts can be written by any court and considered by any other court.

Hendren is a trial court decision, usually given little precedential value except by other Indiana trial courts. The opinion, however, holds that creation science is a sham designed to avoid the prior judicial precedents addressing creationism. The opinion also finds that a claim of “complexity” is also a sham for creationism. The opinion forecasts the Kitzmiller decision’s holding that specified complexity known as Intelligent design is also a form of creationism and a sham designed to avoid constitutional restrictions on teaching religion in public schools. In light of subsequent history, Hendren is persuasive authority, indeed.