ACLU Suing Los Angeles County Over Cross On Official Seal

LOS ANGELES (AP) - The American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Southern California is challenging a decision by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to restore a cross to the county's official seal.

In the lawsuit filed Thursday in federal court, the ACLU claims adding the religious symbol violates the constitutional guarantee of the separation of church and state.

Supervisors voted 3-2 last month to put a cross atop the seal's depiction of historic San Gabriel Mission.

The original seal had a cross over the Hollywood Bowl but it was removed when the seal was redesigned in 2004 after the ACLU threatened legal action.

The latest redesigned seal went into effect on Friday.

A call seeking a response from Don Knabe, one of the supervisors who supported the change, was not immediately returned.