A Louisiana judge who initially ruled in favor of the Catholic church in an abuse case has belatedly recused himself after it emerged he sits on the finance committee of the church that benefited from his decision. Kendrick J Guidry of Lake Charles was the only judge in the state to find that a state supreme court decision upholding a 'lookback window' for old abuse claims did not set a binding precedent. However, he later acknowledged that his ruling benefited Immaculate Heart of Mary, a church on whose finance committee he has served since February.
Disclosure and recusal
Guidry had initially disclosed he was a congregant of the church but failed to mention his role on its finance committee until last week. Under Louisiana's judicial code, such a direct financial interest requires recusal. Law professor Dane Ciolino of Loyola University New Orleans noted that state law is clear: 'Judges, even with close ties to parties, to lawyers, sincerely sometimes believe that they can be impartial. Yet Louisiana’s legislature made it clear that the standard is an objective one.' Kathryn Robb of the abuse victims advocacy group Enough Abuse criticized Guidry for not disclosing his role from the outset, stating that his relationship with the church was more like that of 'an identical twin' than a distant cousin.
The case and its context
The controversy stems from a March 31 hearing in a case alleging severe child sexual abuse by a priest at Immaculate Heart of Mary in the 1980s. Guidry agreed with the diocese's argument that allowing a 40-year-old abuse claim would be an unconstitutional 'taking' of property, despite the Louisiana Supreme Court having upheld the lookback window in June 2024. Robb expressed dismay at Guidry's comments from the bench, where he suggested the law allowed people to 'take shots at you guys for something that might have happened 30 or 40 years ago,' emphasizing that victims seek justice and accountability.
Other recusals and similar cases
Guidry's recusal follows a pattern in Louisiana, where avowedly Catholic judges have issued rulings in favor of the church only to later recuse themselves. For instance, US District Judge Jay Zainey initially recused himself from cases involving the New Orleans archdiocese's bankruptcy but later struck down the lookback window before recusing himself. Another federal judge, Greg Guidry (no relation), also recused himself after scrutiny over his donations to the archdiocese and personal ties to an attorney. The case has since been reassigned to Judge Michael Canaday, who previously ruled against the church's arguments in a similar case.
