Original: Although since 1976 the state Virginia law permitted school districts to implement 60 seconds of silence at the start of each school day , in 1985 , the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that an Alabama '' moment of silence '' law was unconstitutional , in the case Wallace v. Jaffree .
Simplified: In 1976 , the state of Virginia allowed schools to have a moment of silence at the start of the school day .