State Must Honor Adoption, Foster Care Contracts with Catholic Charities (For Now)

By Chuck Sudo in News on Jul 19, 2011 1:25PM

Catholic Charities in Illinois won a court battle yesterday when a Sangamon County judge granted a temporary ruling allowing them to take on new foster care cases.

Last week the state Department of Children and Family Services, with Gov. Quinn's support, informed Catholic Charities that they would no longer be allowed to offer adoption and foster care services over their insistence to not work with unmarried and same-sex couples, a violation of the Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Law. Catholic Charities, in the motion filed in court, contend that the actions by DCFS is a violation of their own freedom of religion and that the actions by DCFS blindsided them.

Catholic Charities and an assistant attorney general presented Judge John Schmidt with an agreement to let the group keep accepting new cases, pending a mid-August hearing on whether Catholic Charities will be able to continue offering foster services over the long term.