MILWAUKEE (WI)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

By Annysa Johnson of the Journal Sentinel

Taking funds the Archdiocese of Milwaukee set aside for cemetery operations to help settle its bankruptcy debts would not hinder its free exercise of religion under the First Amendment and a 1993 federal law aimed at protecting religious freedom, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Susan V. Kelley said in a hearing Friday.

Kelley’s opinion, which is expected to be filed early next week, is a victory for sex-abuse victims and other creditors working to expand the archdiocese’s bankruptcy estate – the pool of money used to fund settlements and the church’s reorganization.

But it could be short-lived.

Lawyers for the creditors committee and the archdiocese’s cemetery trust have agreed to seek a separate decision from the U.S. District Court in a procedural move that reduces Kelley’s findings from a final order to essentially recommendations – a development that appeared…