SCOTUS Blog·1 hour ago·Thursday, November 5, 2026, 10:30 AM

St. Mary and the shrinking reach of Smith

Justice Clarence Thomas began Colorado’s half of yesterday’s argument in St. Mary Catholic Parish v. Roy with a pointed observation. In the court’s last two cases about religious schools and public benefits, Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue and Carson v. Makin, the justices “did not use, even cite, Smith.” So, he asked Colorado’s deputy solicitor general, “Why would we do that in this case?”

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