A federal judge has ruled unconstitutional a Christian "I Believe" vehicle license tag with the image of a cross authorized last year by the S.C. General Assembly.
"The 'I Believe' Act's primary effect is to promote a specific religion, Christianity," U.S. District Judge Cameron Currie wrote in a decision released Tuesday.
State laws promoting one religion over others have been illegal in the United States since the nation's founding, Currie wrote.
Currie also focused on the role played by South Carolina Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer, who originally pushed for the Christian tag after a move to create a similar "I Believe" tag failed in Florida.
"Such a law amounts to state endorsement not only of religion in general, but of a specific sect in particular," Currie wrote.
"Whether motivated by sincerely held Christian beliefs or an effort to purchase political capital with religious coin, the result is the same," she wrote. "The statute is clearly unconstitutional, and defense of its implementation has embroiled the state in unnecessary (and expensive) litigation."
The tag in question would have featured a large cross against a stained glass window and the words "I Believe." No tags had been issued. A state Department of Motor Vehicles spokesman said the department will abide by the judge's decision.
In her 57-page ruling, Currie ordered the state of South Carolina to pay legal costs of the people who filed the lawsuit.
Those costs could not be immediately determined.
Bauer, whose idea it was to pass the law and who worked with Joe Mack, a prominent Baptist, to get it introduced, attacked Currie on Tuesday, calling her a "liberal judge appointed by (President) Bill Clinton."
Bauer said the ruling represented "another attack on Christianity" and that Currie "was using her personal wishes to overrule the Legislature and the will of the thousands of South Carolinians who want to purchase the tags."
But a top state Democrat said Bauer's statements are "political demagoguery" aimed at appealing to religious conservatives who form a key voting bloc in Republican primaries. Bauer is running for governor in next year's June GOP primary.
"The irony of Bauer's demagoguery is that no judge in South Carolina has sent more criminals to prison and is more conservative on many issues than Judge Currie," said Dick Harpootlian, a Columbia defense attorney and former chairman of the state Democratic Party.
Bauer was not a party to the lawsuit.
In an interview, Bauer disputed the notion that advocating for the "I Believe" tag was political. Democrats and Republicans in the House and Senate voted unanimously for the bill, he said.
And he has worked with a rival for the GOP gubernatorial nod, South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster, to promote the law.
"The fact that I'm consulting with one of the guys that's running against me should show you it's not political at all," Bauer said. "Both of us think it's time for Christians to stand up for what they believe."
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