GODSPEED

Praying Football Coach Backed by Supreme Court Quits After Getting Job Back

Joe Kennedy was fired for praying on the field, but got his job back after the Supreme Court ruled last year that he had a right to do so.

A Washington state high school assistant football coach who was fired for refusing to stop praying on the field, only to get his job back after the Supreme Court ruled in his favor last year, has quit just one game into the season. Joe Kennedy told The Seattle Times that he emailed the Bremerton School District his resignation letter around 4 a.m. Wednesday. “I’m done,” he said. His letter, obtained by the Times, cited “a series of actions” by the school that he claimed were “retaliation” against him. In a statement on his website, Kennedy also said that a major factor for his departure was the declining health of a family member out of state. He added that he believed he could best advocate for “constitutional freedom and religious liberty by working from outside the school system.” Kennedy, who lost his part-time coaching gig in 2015 and fought for seven years to get it back, has been living with his wife in Florida, according to the Associated Press. The district told CNN that it had received Kennedy’s resignation, which was still subject to board approval at a Thursday meeting.