A somewhat splintered US Supreme Court ruled today that a cross can remain on a war memorial in a remote part of the Mojave desert.

The 5-4 ruling overturned a decision by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. The majority held that the cross is not only a symbol of Christianity but also represents a general symbol of sacrifice while the minority held that the symbol does uniquely represent the Christian faith.

The case stemmed from an action in which the public land on which the cross stands was transferred to a private owner in exchange for private land elsewhere in the desert. This was intended to eliminate the church state issue as the cross would then stand on private land, not public.