 The case was resolved on December 20, 2005, when Judge John E. Jones III ruled that the Dover Area School District cannot teach Intelligent Design in a science class room, due to its religious origins.The separation of church and state principle, as derived from the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, prohibits any government agency from endorsing religious points of view.In an upset election on November 8, 2005, the eight Republican school board members who voted for the language were all defeated by the challengers from the Dover Cares slate—four Democrats and four Republicans, forced by election rules to run on the Democratic ticket—who opposed the teaching of intelligent design in a science class.