Two Amish men in western Kentucky have been ordered to pay fines and could face jail time for refusing to post reflective triangles on their horse-drawn carriages.
Levi Hostetler and Joe Stutzman were found guilty in short trials in Graves County District Court of failing to use the slow-moving vehicle emblems.
They’re among nine men ordered to jail last month for refusing to pay fines associated with the state-mandated emblems, which they say are a violation of their religious beliefs. The men belong to a conservative sect of Amish that avoids bright colors in their dress and the appearance of modernity, such as vehicle signs.
Hostetler was ordered to pay fines and court costs of $351 for two 2008 violations, while Stutzman’s penalty for a 2008 violation totaled $173.
Assistant County Attorney Scott Robbins said a judge gave the men until Jan. 12 to pay the fines. Robbins said one of the men told Graves District Judge Deborah Hawkins Crooks that he did not intend to pay. Robbins said the trials lasted about five minutes and the men declined to ask questions of police officers called to testify.
The Amish men have asked to be allowed to use gray reflective tape on the buggies, but state law mandates the use of the orange triangles. Robbins said even in the daytime, the orange triangles can give motorists an extra second to avoid the slow-moving carriages.
Robbins said there are about 20 similar pending cases in Graves County. Hostetler, Stutzman and seven other men were ordered to jail last month for refusing to pay fines related to separate violations from 2008.
The state Court of Appeals denied an appeal earlier this year from the men on grounds that the signs conflicted with their religious beliefs. The state Supreme Court has not yet decided if it will hear their appeal.
“We think there are important Kentucky constitutional issues that need to be resolved by this case,” said William Sharp, an American Civil Liberties Union attorney representing the Amish men in the appeal.
Two other Amish men had their trials postponed to November.
Topics Legislation Kentucky
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