SUMMARY: A federal judge is reviewing a lawsuit challenging Arkansas’ new law requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in every public school classroom. Parents from Fayetteville, Springdale, Bentonville, and Siloam Springs school districts seek to block the law before it takes effect on August 5th. Represented by the ACLU, they argue the law violates religious freedom by favoring one religion and interfering with diverse faiths. The state contends the law highlights the Ten Commandments’ historical significance, not religion. Any court ruling blocking the law would only apply to the plaintiffs’ districts. The judge plans a decision before August 5th.

Judge Reviewing Request For 10 Commandments To Not Be Displayed This School Year

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p>by Tess Vrbin, Arkansas Advocate
July 18, 2025

Crawford County officials have joined the appeal of a federal judge’s award of over $441,000 in attorneys’ fees in a case that resulted in blocking parts of a 2023 Arkansas law affecting what books are available in public libraries.

Crawford County and County Judge Chris Keith filed a notice of appeal and a request to stay the monetary judgment on Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas. Keith and the county were among the defendants, along with Arkansas’ 26 prosecuting attorneys, in 18 plaintiffs’ challenge of two sections of Act 372 of 2023.

U.S. District Judge Timothy Brooks permanently blocked the challenged sections in December, determining they violated the First Amendment. In addition to giving city and county governing bodies authority over library content, Act 372 would also have altered libraries’ material reconsideration processes and created criminal liability for librarians who distribute content that some consider “obscene” or “harmful to minors.”

Crawford County and Keith were among the defendants that lost a separate lawsuit over library content in September. U.S. District Judge P.K. Holmes ruled in favor of three parents who claimed the Crawford County Library’s segregation of LGBTQ+ children’s books into separate “social sections” violated the First Amendment.

The case was reassigned from Holmes to Brooks, who ordered the defendants to pay the plaintiffs nearly $113,000. The Crawford County Quorum Court voted unanimously in April to accept the library’s governing board’s offer to pay the fees. The board was among the defendants along with Keith, the county, the quorum court and county library director Charlene McDonnough.

In May, Brooks ordered the defendants in the Act 372 case to reimburse the plaintiffs $441,646.49 in total.

“At this time, the Plaintiffs and Crawford County have been unable to reach a settlement for the fees and costs,” the county’s attorneys wrote in Thursday’s motion to stay the execution of the payment. “Therefore, Crawford County will appeal the award of attorney fees and costs.”

Twice last year, the Crawford County defendants asked Brooks to dismiss them from the Act 372 lawsuit. Brooks denied the motions, ruling that the county and Keith would be responsible for implementing Act 372 if it went into effect and if appeals of challenged material reached the county government.

Attorney General Tim Griffin appealed the ruling on behalf of the rest of the Act 372 defendants in January.

Crawford County officials cited Act 372 as a reason to maintain the library’s “social sections” of LGBTQ+ children’s books that only adults could access. McDonnough’s predecessor, Deidre Grzymala, created the sections as a “compromise” after public outcry between December 2022 and January 2023, a few months before Act 372 became law.

In May, Grzymala sued Crawford County and a member of the library board, alleging defamation and breach of contract over her February 2023 resignation and severance package.

Arkansas Advocate is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Arkansas Advocate maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Sonny Albarado for questions: info@arkansasadvocate.com.

The post Crawford County appeals injunction of Arkansas library law, citing dispute over legal fees appeared first on arkansasadvocate.com

Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Center-Left

This content leans center-left, primarily due to its focus on defending First Amendment rights and opposing laws that restrict access to certain books, particularly those involving LGBTQ+ themes. The article highlights legal challenges to Arkansas legislation seen as limiting library content, emphasizing the unconstitutionality of such restrictions. While the tone remains factual and legalistic, the perspective aligns with protecting free expression and inclusivity, which are commonly associated with center-left viewpoints.

SUMMARY: Fort Smith has declined to provide water for a proposed 3,000-bed prison in Franklin County due to existing water transmission limitations. A recent engineering report revealed that the city’s current maximum water production of 50 million gallons per day is sometimes exceeded, and adding the prison would worsen supply issues. While alternatives like sourcing water from Ozark or the Arkansas River are being considered, Fort Smith’s infrastructure—built in the 1930s—is only partially upgraded. A new 48-inch pipeline is planned, but only the first phase is complete. Full completion may take over a decade, even with unlimited funding, officials say.

New prison would exacerbate Fort Smith’s current water transmission challenges

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