Colombian judges are not allowed to base their rulings on religious precepts, according to a ruling by the Constitutional Court made public Wednesday.
Colombia’s Constitutional Court told a lower court judge in Cali in June that while the religious texts could be used to explain a point of view, they should not be used as the basis for legal rulings.
The court was quoted by The Associated Press as saying legal decisions, “must be devoid of any expression suggesting a bias based on religious beliefs or personal convictions of the judicial officer.”
The mandate of the Constitutional Court likely means the findings will be applicable to all judges and prosecutors in similar cases.
The Cali judge’s decision allegedly included the following quotation from the Bible: “In the case of justice, it shouldn’t even favor the poor.”