diff --git a/src/flask/config.py b/src/flask/config.py
index a266ea1d..7b6a137a 100644
--- a/src/flask/config.py
+++ b/src/flask/config.py
@@ -7,13 +7,6 @@ import typing as t
 from werkzeug.utils import import_string
 
 
-def _json_loads(raw: t.Union[str, bytes]) -> t.Any:
-    try:
-        return json.loads(raw)
-    except json.JSONDecodeError:
-        return raw
-
-
 class ConfigAttribute:
     """Makes an attribute forward to the config"""