ALEXANDRIA, MINN. -- Retired Judge E. J. Ruegemer is 101 now, his eyesight failing, his hearing impaired, his walk halting. But he remembers with absolute clarity the juvenile delinquent whose ignorance of right and wrong spurred the judge to start a movement in 1946 to place thousands of monuments and plaques with the Ten Commandments in courtrooms, schools and parks across the nation. For decades, his campaign, aided by the Fraternal Order of Eagles and a Hollywood film mogul, won Ruegemer praise and respect. "Now, they're being removed in so many places. It saddens me because it does society good...
