CHICAGO — A ruling in favor of Roncalli over a school counselor who was fired over being in a same-sex marriage.
Lynn Starkey sued the school and the Archdiocese of Indianapolis in 2019, claiming discrimination in her firing because she was married to another woman.
A federal appeals court in Chicago has dismissed the lawsuit, citing freedom of religion protections under the First Amendment. It’s in line with the same ruling made by a federal judge in 2021.
Starkey was one of two gay guidance counselors at Roncalli fired in 2018 over their same-sex marriages. Shelly Fitzgerald was the other.
Starkey accused the school of creating a discriminatory and hostile work environment for her after the firing of Fitzgerald.
The school allowed Starkey to finish her contract through the end of the 2018-19 school year, at which point she received notice that her employment would not be renewed for 2019-20 because she violated the terms of her contract.
