A settlement with an atheist group that filed suit over Sheriff Eric Watson's Facebook page will cost Bradley County $41,000.

American Atheists and local plaintiffs, Joshua Stevens and "Jane Doe," will get $15,000, and the county will pay $26,000 in attorney fees.

It was agreed that the sheriff's Facebook page "will not be used to promote or further any religion, religious organization, religious event or religious belief.”

Sheriff Watson said it will be an informational page with no comments allowed.

He will be allowed to maintain his own Facebook page.

Amanda Knief, national legal and public policy director of American Atheists, said, "This settlement is a clear win for the plaintiffs, whose First Amendment rights to free speech and to be free of government establishment of religion were infringed upon. We are pleased the sheriff has agreed to do the right thing by no longer using this official government social media account to promote religion.

"What is unfortunate, is that it took a lawsuit and more than $40,000 in taxpayer money for the county and sheriff to put this common sense policy in place. We would have preferred that the sheriff allow citizens the freedom to comment and interact with the sheriff's office on the Facebook page, but we were not able to reach agreement on that during mediation."

Jane Doe said, "I have always said that Constitutional rights are worth fighting for, and I am proud that when tested, I stood by that principle. It was not easy to stand up to the county sheriff and some people in my community who disagreed with me. Despite some negative backlash, I do not regret taking action against government censorship. If you don't stand up for yourself, you risk losing your rights."