9th Circuit topples Mojave desert cross By The Associated Press 06.08.04 SAN FRANCISCO — A federal appeals court ruled yesterday that an 8-foot cross in the Mojave National Preserve is an unconstitutional government endorsement of religion. Ruling 3-0 in Buono v. Norton, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court that had ruled against the cross, which has become both a war memorial and a place of worship at a Southern California desert site known as Sunrise Rock. The case was brought by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of a retired National Park Service...