United States Supreme Court decides St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School case in split 4-4 vote

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) — The United States Supreme Court has reached a decision in the St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School, Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board (SCSB) versus Drummond case.

The case would've made St. Isidore the first taxpayer-funded religious charter school in the nation.

The ruling was a 4-4 split decision by eight Supreme Court justices, as Justice Amy Coney Barrett recused herself due to close ties in the case.

"I think it's remarkable. It's a great win for Oklahoma," said Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond.

"We were disappointed," said Brian Shellem, Chairman of the SCSB.

The Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled the virtual Catholic charter school unconstitutional. A split vote means the Oklahoma Supreme Court's ruling will remain in place.

An Oklahoma parent and plaintiff in the case against St. Isidore said, "It's really important to me that the government not interfere in my pursuit of faith or in instilling those values in my children."

"We had to stand up as parents and for our kids and our schools and just say, this is not American, this is not the way we understand democracy," added Brewer.

Others reacted to the decision, including State Superintendent Ryan Walters.

He issued a statement about the ruling, expressing disappointment.

"Allowing the exclusion of religious schools from our charter school program in the name of
19th century religious bigotry is wrong,” said Superintendent Walters. “As state superintendent, I
will always stand with parents and families in opposition to religious discrimination and fight
until all children in Oklahoma are free to choose the school that serves them best, religious or
otherwise."

"We are disappointed, but the result of this 4-4 decision with no opinion is that the fight against
religious bigotry will continue in Oklahoma and across the country,” said Hiram Sasser,
Executive General Counsel for First Liberty. “We will not stop until we can bring an end to
religious discrimination in education."

State Superintendent Ryan Walters

In a press conference Thursday afternoon, Supt. Walters also said, "We're looking at a potential amendment to the State Constitution to help clarify this issue. And we're also looking through funding mechanisms for religious charter schools in the future of Oklahoma."

Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt also shared his remarks in a statement Thursday morning.

"This 4-4 tie is a non-decision. Now we’re in overtime. There will be another case just like this one and Justice Barrett will break the tie. This is far from a settled issue. We are going to keep fighting for parents’ rights to instill their values in their children and against religious discrimination."

Governor Kevin Stitt