Editing La Jolla (section)

===Mount Soledad cross===
[[File:Mount Soledad Cross WF.jpg|thumb|upright 0.7|The [[Christian cross]] on [[Mount Soledad]]]]
{{Main|Mount Soledad Cross}}
[[Mount Soledad]] is an {{convert|822|ft|m|adj=mid|-tall}} hill on the eastern edge of La Jolla and one of the highest points in San Diego. A large [[Christian cross]] was placed at the top in 1913 as a prominent landmark. It has been replaced twice, most recently in 1954 with a {{convert|29|ft|m|adj=mid|-tall}} cross ({{convert|43|ft|m}} tall including the base). Originally known as the "Mount Soledad Easter Cross", its presence on publicly owned land was challenged in the 1980s as a violation of the [[separation of church and state]]. Since then the cross has had a war memorial built around it and was renamed "Mount Soledad Veterans War Memorial".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/01/04/california.cross/|title=Appeals court says cross on federal land is unconstitutional|date=January 5, 2011|work=CNN|access-date=May 23, 2013}}</ref>

The issue has been in almost continual litigation ever since, with the city attempting to sell or give away the land under the cross. By an act of Congress, the federal government took possession of it under [[Eminent domain in the United States|eminent domain]] in 2006. The [[United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit]] declared the cross unconstitutional in 2011, and the [[Supreme Court of the United States]] declined to hear an appeal.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/jun/25/mount-soledad-case/|title=Supreme Court won't hear Mt. Soledad cross case|date=June 25, 2012|work=San Diego Union Tribune|access-date=May 23, 2013}}</ref> In December 2013, U.S. District Judge Larry Burns ordered that the cross be removed within 90 days, but stayed the order pending a forthcoming appeal by the government.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://fox5sandiego.com/2013/12/12/federal-judge-orders-mt-soledad-cross-must-come-down/#axzz2nJUI07xd|title=Federal judge says Mt. Soledad cross must come down|last=Wolski|first=Kristi|date=December 12, 2013|work=Fox 5 San Diego|access-date=December 14, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/dec/12/mount-solidad-cross-constitution-removal/|title=Judge: Mt. Soledad cross must come down|last=Davis|first=Kristina|date=December 12, 2013|work=San Diego Union Tribune|access-date=December 14, 2013}}</ref>

On July 20, 2015, a group called the Mt. Soledad Memorial Association reported that it had bought the land under the cross from the [[U.S. Department of Defense|Department of Defense]] for $1.4 million.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/jul/20/mt-soledad-cross-stand-veterans-group-buys-land-de/|title=Mt. Soledad cross to stand as veterans group buys land from Defense Department|newspaper=[[The Washington Times]]}}</ref> On September 7, 2016, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a one-page ruling, ordering dismissal of the case and an end to all current appeals, stating that the case was now moot because the cross was no longer on government land. Both sides agreed that this decision puts a final end to the case.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2016/sep/08/soledad-final/|title=Soledad cross case concludes, leaving memorial in place|last=Moran|first=Greg|date=September 8, 2016|newspaper=[[San Diego Union-Tribune]]|access-date=September 9, 2016}}</ref>