Supreme Court deadlock means Oklahoma religious school can't get public funds

A deadlocked U.S. Supreme Court decision means a lower court ruling that prevented the creation of the St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School in Oklahoma as the nation’s first religious charter school stands. The vote was 4-4 with Justice Amy Coney Barrett recusing herself from the case.

The ruling prevents the school from accessing public funds available to other charter schools in the state.

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The St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School received approval from the state board in 2023, despite objections from elected officials in the state who believed the use of public funds to launch a religious school violated the separation of church and state.

Oklahoma’s Republican Attorney General Gentner Drummond sued in state court and won a victory in the state’s Supreme Court. The school sued in federal court, arguing that the state showed “religious hostility,” claiming the only reason it was denied access to the charter school program was because of its “religious character.”

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Oklahoma argued that using the charter school fund to establish St. Isidore violated the Establishment Clause of the Constitution, which prohibits the state’s endorsement of religion. St. Isidore argued that excluding the school from the program based solely on its religious beliefs violated the Free Exercise Clause, which prohibits religious discrimination by the state.

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The ruling runs counter to previous rulings that allowed the use of public funds on religious institutions. However, this would have been the first time the court was asked whether public funds could be used to effectively launch a religious charter school.

By not reaching a majority decision, the lower court ruling against St. Isidore stands.

Barrett did not provide a reason for her recusal, but she is a Notre Dame Law School graduate, and the school’s religious liberty unit represents St. Isidore, according to NBC News.