ianstone
10-09-2010, 03:26 AM
Girl, 14, wins legal battle against school chiefs to wear nose piercing she claims is part of her religion
By Daily Mail Reporter (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/search.html?s=y&authornamef=Daily+Mail+Reporter)
Last updated at 7:43 AM on 9th October 2010
A 14-year-old girl has won the legal right to wear a nose piercing she claims is part of her religion at school.
Ariana Iacono took her North Carolina high school to court after she was suspended for wearing the piercing.
Now a federal judge has sided with her, ordering the school to readmit the triumphant student.
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2010/10/09/article-1319063-0B89FE7A000005DC-940_468x372.jpg Victory: Ariana Iacono has returned to school after a federal judge ruled her nose piercing was a symbol of her religious belief
The Johnston County school system has a dress code banning facial piercings, along with short skirts, sagging pants and other items deemed distracting or disruptive.
However the school allows for exemptions based on 'sincerely held religious beliefs'.
Iacono and her mother, Nikki, claim the nose piercing is part of their faith, not a fashion statement.
The Iaconos belong to a small religious group called the Church of Body Modification, which sees piercings and tattoos as religious devotion.
The church has 3,500 members nationwide and was incorporated in Pennsylvania in July 2008, according to the lawsuit.
Iacono's lawyer Jon Sasser and the American Civil Liberties Union sued Wednesday, claiming school officials violated Iacono's constitutional religious liberty rights.
The freshman has been suspended repeatedly since classes started four weeks ago.
Now will be able to attend Clayton High School with her nose stud at least until November 3, Sasser said, when another hearing is scheduled.
She wasted no time in getting back to class, with her lawyer telling reporters that she was on the way to a science class on Friday afternoon.
'She's very excited,' Sasser said. 'She's a very bright kid, and they should really be encouraging her.'
Richard Ivey, the Iaconos' Raleigh minister in the Church of Body Modification, said the temporary order is encouraging.
'It's a great step toward justice,' he said.
How easy is it to start your own religion and register it ?
We could Register AC as a religion, what do you think ?
By Daily Mail Reporter (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/search.html?s=y&authornamef=Daily+Mail+Reporter)
Last updated at 7:43 AM on 9th October 2010
A 14-year-old girl has won the legal right to wear a nose piercing she claims is part of her religion at school.
Ariana Iacono took her North Carolina high school to court after she was suspended for wearing the piercing.
Now a federal judge has sided with her, ordering the school to readmit the triumphant student.
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2010/10/09/article-1319063-0B89FE7A000005DC-940_468x372.jpg Victory: Ariana Iacono has returned to school after a federal judge ruled her nose piercing was a symbol of her religious belief
The Johnston County school system has a dress code banning facial piercings, along with short skirts, sagging pants and other items deemed distracting or disruptive.
However the school allows for exemptions based on 'sincerely held religious beliefs'.
Iacono and her mother, Nikki, claim the nose piercing is part of their faith, not a fashion statement.
The Iaconos belong to a small religious group called the Church of Body Modification, which sees piercings and tattoos as religious devotion.
The church has 3,500 members nationwide and was incorporated in Pennsylvania in July 2008, according to the lawsuit.
Iacono's lawyer Jon Sasser and the American Civil Liberties Union sued Wednesday, claiming school officials violated Iacono's constitutional religious liberty rights.
The freshman has been suspended repeatedly since classes started four weeks ago.
Now will be able to attend Clayton High School with her nose stud at least until November 3, Sasser said, when another hearing is scheduled.
She wasted no time in getting back to class, with her lawyer telling reporters that she was on the way to a science class on Friday afternoon.
'She's very excited,' Sasser said. 'She's a very bright kid, and they should really be encouraging her.'
Richard Ivey, the Iaconos' Raleigh minister in the Church of Body Modification, said the temporary order is encouraging.
'It's a great step toward justice,' he said.
How easy is it to start your own religion and register it ?
We could Register AC as a religion, what do you think ?