What should a Catholic judge do in a capital punishment case?
Chopko: I didn’t see any commentators note the fact that the five Catholic justices formed the 5-4 majority in favor of a death sentence last November in the Ayers [v. Belmontes] case — deciding the case, some would say, contrary to the teaching of the pope and the bishops. If any judge finds he or she can’t be impartial and apply the law, for any reason, that judge would have to recuse. LT: What challenges remain for the church, especially in the area of keeping government intrusion into church affairs to a level appropriate under the First Amendment? Chopko: Some of the challenges in the child abuse area spill over into church-state questions. For example, we support increasing reporting obligations for child abuse — but not the evisceration of the clergy-penitent privilege (such as was proposed several years ago in Maryland.) Others concern the kinds of work that the church does to serve the public. After the 1990 Supreme Court ruling in Employment Division v. Smith, it is easier
