Police cars' 'In God We Trust' decals draw complaints

DALLAS (AP) — A police department in a Texas Bible Belt community has placed large "In God We Trust" decals on its patrol vehicles in response to recent violence against law enforcement officers, drawing criticism from a watchdog group that says the decals amount to an illegal government endorsement of religion.

Police Chief Adrian Garcia said he decided to add the decals in response to recent attacks on law enforcement personnel that have received broad attention, including the Aug. 28 killing of a sheriff's deputy who was shot 15 times at a Houston-area gas station.

[...] of the dozens of complaints about the decals lodged in recent months by the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation, about half were sent to law enforcement agencies in Missouri.

The growing number of law enforcement agencies adding the phrase to vehicles amounts to a violation of separation of church and state, she said.

Charles Haynes, vice president of the Religious Freedom Center of the Newseum Institute in Washington, D.C., explained "In God We Trust" began appearing on federal coins in the Civil War era, and Congress in 1956 approved it as the national motto.