Faith-based company is one step closer in legal fight to distribute dog tags with Bible verses

A faith-based company fighting for the right to once again make religious-themed dog tags cleared a legal hurdle in a battle against the Department of Defense.

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas ruled late last month that Shields of Strength can move forward with its lawsuit against the Pentagon. First Liberty Institute and the law firm Fish & Richardson, which represent the company, believe DoD’s "discriminatory refusal" to allow production of Shield of Strengths's popular military-themed dog tags with inspirational Bible verses for service members and their families is illegal and in violation of the First Amendment.

"We do not anticipate the government will appeal, and we look forward to proving that the actions taken against a company whose mission is to serve our brave men and women in uniform were discriminatory and illegal," First Liberty senior counsel Danielle Runyan told Fox News Digital.

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Shields for Strength owners Kenny Vaughan with a religious dog tag.  (First Liberty Institute)

But Michael Weinstein, who heads the group that first filed the complaint over Shields of Strengths dog tags, remained confident.

The District Court "merely ruled that this absolute loser of a case can proceed," the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) president and founder told Fox News Digital. "But with ten of Shields of Strength’s thirteen complaints against the DoD dismissed, either in part or entirely, in this ruling it wasn’t exactly a 'cue the fireworks of victory' display for Shields of Strength and First Liberty."

Kenny Vaughan and his wife, who own Shields of Strength, began by creating military-themed replica dog tags with encouraging Bible verses that have been favored by military service members, first responders and athletes, according to First Liberty. To date, over four million Shields of Strength dog tags have been distributed, with two million donated by the company.

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In 2012, the U.S. Army granted a trademark license allowing Shields of Strength to feature Army trademarks on its products, according to First Liberty. It eventually obtained licenses to use the Air Force and Marine Corps logos, as well.

But in 2019, the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF) sent a complaint to the Pentagon over military logos appearing with religious symbols and demanded an investigation. The Army told Kenny Vaughan he wasn't authorized to put biblical verses on Army products and that they had to be removed from products and descriptions on Shields of Strength's website.

Production of the dog tags, as a result, was halted. That's when First Liberty filed its lawsuit on Shields of Strength's behalf. 

A Shields for Strength religious-themed dog tag.  (Shields for Strength)

Vaughan was shocked there were groups in America that would go on the attack against service members' ability to be reminded of scripture while in battle, he told Fox News Digital.

"I was also surprised the DoD would listen to those groups and target Shields of Strength knowing our products have inspired millions of our fighting men and women and their loved ones," Vaughan said. 

"It is encouraging that the court recognized our case has merit and can continue," he added. "We won’t give up."

DoD filed a motion to dismiss the case, but the District Court rejected it on May 31, citing the First Amendment.

"Because the Constitution itself provides judicially manageable standards, a claim that agency action violates the Constitution is reviewable unless Congress’s intent to bar review is ‘clear,’" Judge J. Campbell Barker wrote in his opinion. "And nothing establishes such a ‘clear’ bar to review of constitutional claims here."

Vaughan and Runyan applauded the ruling.

"Shields of Strength has been a source of strength and encouragement for our military heroes for over 25 years," Vaughan said. "Every dog tag we ever made was at the request of the troops and their families and it was our honor to do so."

"The hardest part has been declining requests for the last several years," he added. "We look forward to the day we no longer have to say no to a Solider, Marine, Sailor, or Airman who is asking for a reminder of God’s promise." 

Runyan said the decision was also a victory "for the brave men and women of our armed forces and their families who gain divine inspiration from Shields’ replica dog tags containing biblical scripture and military insignia." 

VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES - MARCH 14: A view of the Department of Defense at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, on March 14, 2023. (Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

But Weinstein remained undeterred.

"The Military Religious Freedom Foundation’s (MRFF) complaint to DoD was that Shields of Strength’s use of official DoD insignia on its overtly Christian religious merchandise indubitably implied an unconstitutional DoD endorsement of the merchandise’s solely Christian messages," he told Fox News Digital. 

"Three of the U.S. military’s branches wholeheartedly agreed and complied with MRFF’s demands to send cease and desist letters to Shields of Strength," Weinstein added. 

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A trial date was set for February 2025.  

DoD declined to comment on pending litigation.