In Tazewell County, Virginia, the sheriff is courting controversy by adding decals saying, “In God We Trust” to all police cruisers.
According to WJHL TV, Sheriff Brian Hieatt says God is an important influence and needs to be recognized.
“Our department feels very strongly about having In God We Trust on our vehicles. We know there is nothing we can do for our community without the guidance of our Lord,” Hieatt said.
“We want the public to know,” the sheriff added, “that we have strong Christian men and women serving their community. Members of the department actually hold weekly Bible Study meetings, and we are thankful that Pastor Boyd opened up his Church for our class and then donated to our cause.”
The sheriff also said several local churches helped raise funds to help pay for the decals.
This Virginia sheriff’s office won’t be alone in adding the phrase to police vehicles.
One community in North Carolina also recently added the stickers to police cars.
In addition, late last year, the state of Texas was embroiled in controversy when the state’s Attorney General ruled that the phrase was perfectly legal on police cars despite the claims made by anti-Christian activists who said the stickers violated the separation of church and state.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston, or email the author at igcolonel@hotmail.com.