The Indiana Supreme Court will not review a former state trooper's claim that his firing for refusing to work at a casino violated his state constitutional rights to religious freedom.
The high court rejected an appeal by Ben Endres on Thursday, saying he raised an important legal question but did not press his claim enough at the trial court level to warrant appellate review.
Endres, who is now a St. Joseph County sheriff's deputy, wanted the court to force the Indiana State Police to accommodate his religious beliefs.
David Kolbe, a Warsaw attorney who represented Endres, said the appeal was his client's last chance of getting his old job back.
"I'm convinced this is it," Kolbe said.
Endres, who is Baptist, said he was not opposed to general casino crime-fighting, but could not accept an assignment as a full-time gaming officer aboard the Blue Chip Casino in Michigan City. He was fired for insubordination in April 2000 after nine years of being a trooper.
Endres filed lawsuits in both federal and state courts, saying his rights under federal law and the U.S. and Indiana constitutions had been violated.
A federal law protects people from discrimination based on religion. But the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago said the law did not require police and fire departments to assign workers to duties compatible with their principles. The U.S. Supreme Court in April declined to hear the case.