House Bill 1214

Update: With a 13-0 vote, the House Judiciary Committee voted to kill House Bill 1214.

Background: House Bill 1214 would provide immunity for security personnel of a religious organization.

Our position: The ACLU of South Dakota opposes House Bill 1214. Religious freedom does not give religious organizations general immunity from secular laws. Exempting religious organizations from nearly every law and shielding them from civil and criminal liability — no matter the harm to others — is the type of religious preference that the U.S. Constitution forbids.