High court won’t take Clinton monuments case

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court refused Monday to consider overturning former President Clinton’s orders protecting more than 2 million acres of federal land in Washington and four other Western states.

Clinton used a century-old law to create national monuments in places such as California’s Sequoia National Forest. Timber interests, recreation groups and Tulare County, Calif. argued at the Supreme Court that the restrictions on logging there have been harmful.

Federal policy has turned the forest into "virtual tinder boxes for tree stand-destroying fires that destroy all wildlife and wildlife habitat in their path and constitute serious threats to personal safety and private property," Washington attorney Gary Stevens wrote in the appeal.

The Mountain States Legal Foundation of Denver, a conservative public interest law firm, challenged the designations of monuments in Washington, Oregon, Arizona and Colorado. The group argued Clinton abused his discretion in the 2000 designations.

Bush administration lawyer Theodore Olson said there was no law allowing such lawsuits against the president over the designation of national monuments.

In other action at the Supreme Court on Monday, the opening day of its 2003-04 term, the justices:

Turned aside a church-state fight over a Spanaway Bible club given permission by a lower court to meet in a public school during class time. Attorneys for the Bethel School District superintendent in Washington state argued that a federal appeals court was far out of bounds when it ruled in favor of the Bible club last year.

Refused to hear an appeal from a drug addict sent to prison for murder after she bore a stillborn child.

Turned down an appeal from Ramzi Yousef, the man who masterminded the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.

Threw out an $80 million verdict against cigarette maker Philip Morris in the lung cancer death of a janitor in Portland, Ore. Justices said the verdict should be reviewed by lower courts to ensure it is not unconstitutionally excessive.

Gave no help to a founding member of the rock band "The Beach Boys." Guitarist Alan Jardine had fought a court order that barred him from using the term "Beach Boys" in his touring band.

Turned aside appeals from former American prisoners of war and others who claim they were forced to work for private Japanese companies as slave laborers during World War II.

Refused to consider whether residential breeders of dogs and cats should have to get federal licenses.