RICHMOND, Va. — A judge has ruled that a lawsuit seeking to prevent Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam's administration from removing an enormous statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee can proceed.
The judge's decision clears the way for a trial in the fall.
The state had asked the judge to dismiss the lawsuit. He mostly rejected that request, although he did narrow the claims that can proceed.
Northam announced plans to remove the massive state-owned statue in June after the death of George Floyd.
The statue was unveiled in 1890 at a time when Jim Crow racial segregation laws were on the rise.