Lawsuit claims Virginia government is contractually obligated to leave Confederate statue in place

Lawsuits brought by residents of Virginia argue that the state is legally forbidden from removing a huge statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee in the heart of the city, with one suit arguing that the original contractual terms of the statue's construction stipulate that the government must leave the monument in place. 

The Lee statue, erected in 1890 as a memorial to the Virginia native and Confederate commander of the Army of Northern Virginia, has recently been the site of numerous protests, with the statue's pedestal itself being subject to significant vandalism from Black Lives Matter protesters and other demonstrators in recent weeks. 

Activists have argued that the statue should come down, arguing it represents a history of slavery and oppression in the South. 

Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam last week announced that the Virginia – which maintains control over the statue – will soon remove the monument and place it somewhere else. 

Northam's decision resulted the two lawsuits.

One argues that the removal would violate federal landmark law, while the other claims that the original terms of the land deed associated with the statue preempt Northam's attempts to remove it. 

Virginia is bound to view both the statue and the land around it as "perpetually sacred," the deed stipulates, according to the one lawsuit; the state is furthermore reportedly bound to “faithfully guard it and affectionately protect it.”

The suit was filed in the Richmond City Circuit Court by William Gregory, the great-grandson of two signatories of the original deed. 

Richmond Circuit Judge Bradley Cavedo on Monday granted a 10-day injunction against Virginia to bar it from removing the statue before the matter is settled. 

Cavedo said there would be "a likelihood of irreparable harm to the statue" if it were removed under Northam's terms, necessitating the injunction while the court determines the outcome of the suit.