Judge Dismisses Air Force Academy Suit:

A federal judge threw out a lawsuit against the Air Force Academy that alleges the school was illegally forcing Christian rhetoric on cadets. US District Judge James Parker in New Mexico ruled that the former students who sought to sue the academy did not provide enough evidence that their rights were violated. The suit, spearheaded by Michael Weinstein of Albuquerque, alleges that an AFA chaplain urged cadets to attend church ceremonies, lest they burn “in the fires of hell.” Parker said the case was not valid because the plaintiffs no longer attend the academy. However, Parker dismissed the suit without prejudice, which means the plaintiffs can sue again. And, reportedly, they have pledged to do so. (In the just passed 2007 defense authorization bill, lawmakers told the Air Force and the Navy to scrap their recent attempts to establish new religious guidelines.)