An evenly divided Supreme Court on Thursday ruled against a religious school that sought public funding from the state of Oklahoma. 

In a 4-4 vote, the justices upheld the Oklahoma State Supreme Court’s decision that for St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School in Oklahoma City to receive public funds would be unconstitutional. Justice Amy Coney Barrett had recused herself from the case. 

The court issued a one-sentence ruling upholding the lower court’s decision, saying only: “The judgment is affirmed by an equally divided Court.”

Oklahoma has argued that providing state funds for a religious charter school violates the First Amendment. 

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The Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board approved St. Isidore’s contract request in June 2023, making them eligible to receive public funds. The school agreed that it would be free and open to all students “as a traditional public school,” and would comply with local, state and federal education laws.

But St. Isidore also indicated that the school “fully embraces the teachings” of the Catholic Church and participates “in the evangelizing mission of the church.”

Its ability to receive state funding was later blocked by the Oklahoma Supreme Court, which ruled that using the funds for a religious school was in violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. 

Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond sued to block the approval of the school’s state charter, calling it an “unlawful sponsorship” of a sectarian institution, and “a serious threat to the religious liberty of all four-million Oklahomans.” 

That argument was appealed to the Supreme Court, which agreed to hear the case in October.

School choice advocates rally outside the Supreme Court building. (Fox News Digital )

In more than two hours of wide-ranging oral arguments last month, justices appeared split along ideological lines over whether to allow St. Isidore to become the first religious charter school in the U.S. 

The justices focused on two questions during the oral arguments: First was whether charter schools should be treated as public schools, which are considered extensions of the state and therefore subject to the Establishment Cause and its ban establishing or endorsing a religion; or if the school should be considered a private entity or contractor, which was the argument made by St. Isidore.

The second question was whether Oklahoma’s actions violated the Free Exercise Clause of the Constitution, by placing what the school argues is an undue burden on its religious mission.

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From left: Supreme Court Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson. (Getty Images)

The decision comes as the Supreme Court’s conservative majority has, in recent years, ruled in favor of allowing taxpayer funds to be allocated to some religious organizations to provide “non-sectarian services” such as adoption services or food banks.

In this case, the justices debated what limits on curriculum supervision and control would be placed on the religious charter school, if its contract with the state was allowed to move forward.

Justices Kentanji Brown Jackson, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan pressed attorneys for the school on how they would treat students with different religious backgrounds who might opt to attend.

There is no indication of how each justice ultimately voted. 

The National Park Service recently identified a hiker who died in the Grand Canyon last week as a beloved 74-year-old Washington state doctor.

Grand Canyon Regional Communications Center staff received a report on May 15 of an unresponsive hiker on the North Kaibab Trail, about half a mile below the North Kaibab Trailhead.

Dr. Dennis Smith, of Olympia, Washington, was attempting a rim-to-rim hike from the South Rim to the North Rim when authorities and friends said he collapsed on the trail.

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Though there is limited cell phone service in the canyon, the incident happened close enough to the top that they were able to call for a park service helicopter. Medics restarted his heart, but it later stopped again, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.

His cause of death is under investigation by the Coconino County Medical Examiner’s Office, according to the park service.

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Fellow doctor, Tom Helpenstell, who worked with Smith for more than 30 years, told Fox News Digital the pair ran across the canyon when it was hotter, and he believes it was a “freak” accident.

“I think it was 100 degrees or close to it, but he’s really good about hydrating,” Helpenstell said. “He’s always drinking fluids. … He’s way too smart to be pushing beyond his limits. I think this was just a freak thing.”

Dr. Dennis Smith worked in general orthopedics. (Photo courtesy of Tom Helpenstell)

After doing a short stint in the Navy, Smith, a former family practice doctor, became an orthopedic surgeon. He then started his own practice, Olympia Orthopaedic Associates, where he met Helpenstell in 1994.

“We worked together in the same office and assisted each other every Tuesday in surgeries for 30 years,” Helpenstell said. “He and I have run across the Grand Canyon three times, doing Ultra Trail-type running. Probably two years ago, he decided not to do running [anymore], so he was hiking with a group out of Tucson, Arizona, where he spends the winters.”

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Before deciding not to keep running, the pair ran up Mount Whitney together, completed full Iron Man competitions and Olympic-distance triathlons together, and climbed Mount Rainier.

“He’s super active, super fit,” Helpenstell said. “This was not even a run, this was a hike. I don’t want to downplay it. Grand Canyon’s a big day, for sure, but this was completely out of the blue.”

Dr. Dennis Smith was described as someone who was “super fit.” (Photo courtesy of Tom Helpenstell)

In addition to Smith’s athletic feats, Helpenstell said he was highly respected in his community for his work in general orthopedics, where he did trauma, hip and knee replacements. 

“He would jump in and take care of anyone at any time. Really, really great,” Helpenstell said. “Within the surgeon community, we’re the carpenters. … Even when he retired from his regular work [in 2021], he stayed on and took call for us and stayed up at night doing cases. He kept his hand in it, until just about a year and a half or two ago. He was an amazing man.”

Dr. Dennis Smith started a practice in Washington state in the late 1980s. (George Rose/Getty Images, Olympia Orthopaedic Associates)

“He read like crazy,” Helpenstell said. “He was like an encyclopedia. We would always joke, we don’t need Google, we have Dennis. He was really into health and nutrition, and what diets are the right ones to take, and what supplements. I mean, the guy was crazy about staying healthy. He had switched to playing pickleball because he thought it would make his brain learn new things, which would keep him from getting Alzheimer’s or anything like that. He was more focused than anyone I know about staying healthy and living long, which makes this hard.”

Dr. Dennis Smith runs a race, is pictured standing on the first place spot on the podium. (Photos courtesy of Tom Helpenstell)

Smith leaves behind his wife, Evelyn, who would have celebrated their 50th anniversary on Sunday, and four children. 

He also leaves behind numerous grandchildren who he enjoyed hiking and running with.

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The NPS urged all visitors to Grand Canyon National Park, particularly those planning to hike or backpack in the inner canyon, to prepare for extreme heat.

Park rangers strongly advise against hiking in the inner canyon during the hottest part of the day, between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Hikers and backpackers attempting rigorous distances, such as rim to rim, through the inner canyon, are encouraged to be self-reliant to prevent emergency situations for themselves and responders. 

“Be aware that efforts to assist hikers may be delayed due to limited staff, the number of rescue calls, and employee safety requirements,” according to the park service.

A recent excavation in Texas yielded some “colossal creatures,” according to local officials – and archaeologists are hopeful more will be uncovered soon.

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) announced the discovery in a recent press release. In a statement, officials said the excavation took place in Lubbock during the environmental review for Loop 88, a proposed state highway.

During the archaeological survey, diggers uncovered ancient bones dating back to prehistoric times. The remains belonged to megafauna, which are large mammals.

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Chris Ringstaff, a project planner with TxDOT’s environmental affairs division, said that megafauna bones “[are] not unusual in the region.”

Ringstaff also noted that at least one giant ground sloth was identified, thanks to its distinctive tooth.

“Whether all the bones are giant ground sloth or there are different animals such as mammoth or mastodon, we’re not sure,” he said.

“Paleontologists will give us positive identification.”

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“We’re here to get the road built, but who doesn’t love digging up big ol’ animals?” Ringstaff added.

TxDOT noted that the Lone Star State is home to many dried-out lakes called playas, which date back to the Ice Age.

Archaeologists hope to find evidence of more Ice Age megafauna at the Lubbock excavation site. (Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT))

“In prehistoric times, animals and humans used playas as water sources and these sites can sometimes contain evidence of human activity,” the press release noted.

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Archaeologists are still searching for small artifacts. They’re also using dating techniques to determine the age of the remains. 

If any proof of human settlement is found, the project will be temporarily halted.

“Should the site reveal human activity with megafauna from the Ice Age, it would be [the] first of its kind for a TxDOT project,” the statement said.

The skeleton of a giant ground sloth, seen here. Excavators found remains of a giant ground sloth at the Lubbock site. (Getty Images)

Several prehistoric bones are found in the U.S. every year. 

Last summer, archaeologists in Iowa unearthed a 13,000-year-old mastodon skull.

Later in 2024, a New York homeowner found a complete mastodon jaw in his Scotchtown backyard.