THE United States Supreme Court has reached a deadlock in a case in which state funding was sought for the first religious-charter school. The Justices were split 4:4 on a decision.
The deadlock means that St Isidore’s Roman Catholic School, Oklahoma City, will now not be able to open with public funds.
The Episcopal Church and other faith leaders had opposed state funding of the school, arguing that it would threaten the separation of Church and State and thus violate the First Amendment (News, 17 April).
The President of the House of Deputies, Julia Ayala Harris, welcomed the outcome — revealed in a one-line statement — as a “win for true religious freedom”.
In a statement, she said: “While today’s ruling is certainly a line in the sand and a win for public education and true religious freedom, we must remain vigilant. This case was not about school choice; it was about power, theocratic capture, and the mainstreaming of Christian nationalism.
“We must attend to the larger threat, which will require us to be leaders of courageous, faithful witness.”
The case of St Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual was heard on 30 April. The school’s lawyers argued that its exclusion from public funding was religious discrimination.
The Oklahoma Supreme Court had previously ruled that funding the school would directly contradict the state and federal constitutional bans on state-funded religious education. The Supreme Court’s tied vote means that this earlier ruling still stands.
Charter schools are public schools that are free and open to all, receive state funding, but are run by independent boards.
The decision was made by just eight Supreme Court Justices, as one recused herself. Of the remaining Justices, five are conservative and the others liberal.
Oklahoma’s two Roman Catholic bishops said that they would explore other options for the school. The Archbishop of Oklahoma City, the Most Revd Paul Coakley, and the Bishop of Tulsa, the Rt Revd David Konderla, said that they would be looking into “other options for offering a virtual Catholic education to all persons”.
