Richmond judge in Lee statue case says ruling expected in 7 to 10 days [View all]

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Richmond judge in Lee statue case says ruling expected in 7 to 10 days

Eric Kolenich 15 hrs ago

The trial to determine the fate of the Robert E. Lee statue on Monument Avenue was held Monday in a Richmond courtroom, and it became a wide-ranging discussion on the causes of the Civil War and race relations for the past 160 years.

Gov. Ralph Northam called for the 130-year-old statue to be dismantled June 4, but a lawsuit seeks to keep it standing. Circuit Judge W. Reilly Marchant said he expects to issue his ruling in seven to 10 days.

The proceedings started Monday morning, lasted most of the day, and included arguments from both sides and the testimony of four witnesses.

At the crux of the plaintiffs’ claim are deeds that were signed in 1887 and 1890 that required the monument to be held “perpetually sacred” and protected by the state. Patrick McSweeney, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, called Northam’s order to take down the statue unconstitutional.

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Eric Kolenich
Reporter

Eric Kolenich writes about higher education, sports, coronavirus and protests for the Richmond Times-Dispatch. He joined the newspaper in 2009 after graduating from the University of Virginia with a degree in English. [phone]

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