Americans United files appeal in case of former Roncalli HS guidance counselor
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Americans United for Separation of Church and State has appealed the decision by a federal judge in the case of Shelly Fitzgerald, a former Roncalli High School guidance counselor fired in 2018 because she was in a same-sex marriage.
In September, Judge Richard Young ruled in favor of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.
Young upheld the Archidocese’s decision to fire Fitzgerald, saying it was covered by “ministerial exception” from federal anti-discrimination workplace rules.
In his ruling, Young wrote, “To be sure, ‘[i]t is a stretch to call a high school guidance counselor a minister,’ as ‘the job is predominantly secular.’”
Young added: “But because Roncalli, through the employment agreement and faculty handbooks, expressly entrusted Fitzgerald with shaping the school’s religious policy, Fitzgerald’s position as Co-Director of Guidance qualifies for the ministerial exception under Starkey. Since the application of the ministerial exception bars all of Fitzgerald’s claims, summary judgment is appropriate for Roncalli and the Archdiocese.”
In an appeal brief filed Thursday with the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Americans United argued that Young was wrong to dismiss Fitzgerald’s case.
“The First Amendment rightly gives religious employers special solicitude to choose important religious figures to teach and preach the faith. It does not give them the power to choose what laws apply to them and when,” the brief notes.