Updated Sept. 17, 3:48 p.m.
A Sergeant at Creech Air Force Base crossed out the words "so help me God"on his re-enlistment contract before signing it earlier this year. The Air Force said at the time that if the airman did not sign the contract by November, he would not be allowed to re-enlist.
But as legal scholar Eugene Fidell predicted on State of Nevada, the U.S. Department of Defense has informed the Air Force that they are in violation of the Constitution, and the enlistee is allowed to omit 'so help me God' on his contract.
Fidell says it was no surprise that the Air Force challenged the atheist's request to keep the language in the oath secular.
"The Air Force, more than any other branch of the service, seems to have become a hotbed for religious fervor."
The airman's cause was taken up by the American Humanist Association, who issued this statement from attorney Monica Miller:
“We are pleased that the U.S. Department of Defense has confirmed our client has a First Amendment right to omit the reference to a supreme being in his reenlistment oath. We hope the Air Force will respect the constitutional rights of Atheists in the future.”
GUESTS
Eugene R. Fidell, military law scholar
Florence Rogatz, Visiting Lecturer in Law, Yale Law School
Copyright 2015 KNPR-FM. To see more, visit http://www.knpr.org/.