Springfield, Ill., Sep 27, 2011 / 13:10 pm
Illinois Catholic Charities' foster care services may eventually cease to exist after a local judge refused to change his ruling that the state has the right to stop referring children to charities in four dioceses.
“If you don't have new referrals, the system basically just atrophies,” Robert Gilligan, executive director of the Illinois Catholic Conference, told CNA on Sept. 27.
“We can't continue to fight this in court if there are no children in the system.”
On Sept. 26, Illinois Circuit Court Judge John Schmidt reiterated his Aug. 18 ruling, which held that “no citizen has a recognized legal right to a contract with the government.”