'Anti-Sharia' Law Moribund in Florida Senate as Adjournment Nears

Assailed by Muslim groups and shelved by Senate President Mike Haridopolos, an "anti-Sharia" law bill lay near death at the Florida Legislature Friday.

Senate Bill 1360 would have restricted state courts from considering foreign laws in most cases. Authored by Sen. Alan Hays, R-Umatilla, the bill was identical to HB 1209, whicheasily passed the House 92-24.

But Hays' bill became ensnared in a late-breaking political controversy when proponents distributed flamboyant fliers and a pamphlet decrying the alleged intrusion of Islamic law into America's courts.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations and another Muslim group, United Voices for America, condemned the leaflets, as well as the legislation -- even though the bill did not specifically reference Sharia or any religious law.