Plans Move Forward To Remove State Capitol's Ten Commandments Monument

The final answer has been given. The Ten Commandments monument on the state Capitol's northwest side will be removed. The question now becomes – how?

What happened Thursday was mostly procedural, but it put the process of removing the monument in motion.

8/15/15 Related Story: Oklahomans Continue to Debate Ten Commandments Monument Placed On State Grounds

Despite protests by both public officials and Oklahomans, a Supreme Court mandate means there’s no choice but to take down the Ten Commandments from the state Capitol.

Thursday, a judge called for a conference where all the lawyers involved in the case will create a game plan.

On Sept. 11, they'll try to get on the same page about how it'll be removed and they’ll also talk about a timeline.

“This is a pretty good sized monument. It’s big. It’s heavy. It’s a significant investment for the private donor. So it’s not something you simply pick up and move,” Brady Henderson, legal director with the Oklahoma American Civil Liberties Union.

“If the State shows up and says, ‘We think we need an extra month,’ well then it’s the opportunity for us and the court to hear why. And to either say we think your reason is rational and reasonable or no, we just think you’re trying to delay this and we don’t think that’s appropriate,” Henderson continued.

Henderson’s clients and the court aren't necessarily concerned about where it goes, as long as it is no longer violating the Constitution.

“They could in theory simply try to put it in a warehouse, they could also try to give it back to the private donor,” Henderson said.

That private donor is Representative Mike Ritze and his family.

News 9 reached out to him, but didn’t hear back before the story aired.

Depending on how the conference goes, Henderson with the ACLU said he can't imagine why it wouldn't be gone within two weeks after Sept. 11.