MCALESTER, Okla. (AP) -- An Oklahoma county has denied the request of a man who's seeking to build a Ten Commandments statue.
The McAlester News-Capital reports that contractor Tim Mitchell requested to place the religious statue outside the Pittsburg County Courthouse at a meeting on Monday. He also told commissioners that he would fund the statue's construction.
But District Attorney Chuck Sullivan told Mitchell and county commissioners that the state's constitution and reinforcing Oklahoma Supreme Court decisions prohibit placing a religious statue on court property.
Mitchell plans to continue to search for alternatives to create the statue. One possibility includes purchasing property for the county, while other options could result in a monument on some nearby property.
He says he "was told by God" to create the statue two years ago.
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