Illinios judge .stops. state from dropping Catholic Charities from foster care

Okay, Colbert wasn't the judge, but you get the idea

SPRINGFIELD --- A judge in Springfield today ordered that Catholic Charities can keep serving foster children despite the state’s decision to eliminate their contract.

The order is temporary and a hearing will take place in August on the issue.

Sangamon County Judge John Schmidt issued the ruling after both sides offered lengthy arguments in court this afternoon. Schmidt said that his order freezes the state’s contract with Catholic Charities as it was before the state decided to cut it off earlier this month.

Three Catholic Charities groups sought the injunction to continue serving families and abiding by Catholic principles that prohibit placing children with unmarried cohabiting couples.

"We're not sure what the state is intending to do or how it's intending to do it," said Peter Breen, an attorney with the Thomas More Society representing Catholic Charities. "It's a surprise. But it's also very disturbing. The impact on the [nearly 2,000] children in Catholic Charities care will be catastrophic."

Chicago Tribune

HT Bliss

State of Illinois severs foster-care ties with Catholic Charities

Who else will the State of Illinois look to shut down?

The state of Illinois has declined to renew its foster care and adoption contracts with Catholic Charities across Illinois, possibly ending a historic public and private partnership initiated by the Roman Catholic Church a half century ago and potentially severing the relationship between 2,500 foster children and their caseworkers.

Lawyers for three of the Catholic Charities agencies will seek an injunction from a Sangamon County judge on Tuesday.

In a letter sent last week to Catholic Charities in the dioceses of Peoria, Joliet, Springfield and Belleville, the Department of Children and Family Services told all four agencies that the state could not accept its signed contracts for the 2012 fiscal year because “your agency has made it clear that it does not intend to comply with the Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act.”

“That law applies to foster care and adoption services,” each letter stated. “Thus, there is no meeting of the minds as to the [Fiscal Year 2012] Foster Care and Adoption Contracts.”

Last month, Catholic Charities in the dioceses of Springfield, Peoria and Joliet sued the Illinois attorney general and DCFS for threatening to enforce new policies that accommodate civil unions. The three agencies asked the court to declare that they are legally justified to preserve their current policy of exclusively granting licenses to married couples and single, non-cohabiting individuals and referring couples in civil unions to other child welfare agencies.

the rest at Chicago Trib