LAKE CHARLES, La. – Another day, another swamp creature doing swampy things. Judge Kendrick Guidry, bless his heart, finally recused himself from a clergy abuse case after it came out that he was basically the treasurer of the very church he was ruling in favor of. I know, you're shocked. I'm shocked. Okay, nobody's shocked. This is Louisiana.

So, the backstory: there's this 'lookback window' law that lets abuse victims sue even if the statute of limitations expired, which, let's be honest, is probably a good thing. But the Catholic Church, being the ever-compassionate organization it is, doesn't like it. Naturally. The Louisiana Supreme Court previously upheld the constitutionality of the lookback window. Judge Guidry was the only judge to rule that the state supreme court’s decision to uphold the law did not set a binding precedent.

Our boy Kendrick here initially disclosed he was a member of the Immaculate Heart of Mary church. Cute. Then it turns out he's been on the finance committee since February. You know, the committee that handles all the money. The money that might be affected by, oh, I don't know, a massive abuse lawsuit?

Some Loyola University law professor, Diane Ciolino, said the law is clear: judges with ties to parties in a case gotta recuse themselves. “Judges, even with close ties to parties, to lawyers, sincerely sometimes believe that they can be impartial,” she said. Bless her heart. She actually thinks these guys are sincere. Honey, I've got a bridge to sell you. She emphasized that the standard for recusal is objective, based on what a reasonable observer would believe, rather than the judge's subjective belief in their impartiality.

Then you've got Kathryn Robb, from Enough Abuse, who rightfully called out Guidry for acting like he was just a distant cousin of the church. She called it like it is. She said it’s more like Guidry is the Church's identical twin.

The whole thing blew up after a hearing on a case involving alleged abuse from the 80s. Guidry said he could be fair, and the lawyers initially agreed that just being a member of the church wasn't disqualifying. But being on the finance committee? That's a different story. That’s where the actual grift begins.

The Church argued that allowing the lawsuit would be an unconstitutional “taking” of their property. Boo hoo. Cry me a river of holy water. Now, a new judge gets to decide. Will it be another swamp creature? Place your bets.