Removal Of Ten Commandments Monument From Okla. Capitol Approved

[Capt. Obvious]

The Oklahoma Capitol Preservation Commission on Tuesday approved the removal of a Ten Commandments monument from the state capitol grounds after a court ordered the state to remove the 6-foot-tall, 2,400-pound granite monument, according to the Tulsa World.

The state's Office of Management and Enterprise Services will work with the builder who installed the monument to remove it from the grounds, John Estus, a spokesman for the office, told the Tulsa World. Estus also said that he will speak with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.

"The Oklahoma Highway Patrol has concerns about individuals or groups interfering with the removal or tampering with the monument," he told the Tulsa World.

The monument was replaced in January after a man drove into the monument and destroyed it. According to Oklahoma city station KOCO, the man "spit on a picture of President Barack Obama and acknowledged destroying the monument."

The Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled in June that the capitol must remove the monument from the capitol grounds. The monument was donated to the state capitol by Rep. Mike Ritze (R), prompting the state legislature to pass a bill in 2012 authorizing the monument's display.

TPM