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Second Circuit: New York Prisoner’s Religious Discrimination Need Not Show a “Substantial” Burden of Beliefs
Loaded on Oct. 15, 2024
by Douglas Ankney
published in Prison Legal News
October, 2024, page 17
Filed under:
Religious Discrimination.
Location:
New York.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit waded into a contentious debate over religious rights on November 27, 2023, holding that prisoners claiming a violation of those rights under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 need to show only that their beliefs were burdened. The Court joined the Third, …
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More from this issue:
- FCC Slashes Prison and Jail Phone Rates, Caps Video Call Cost, Eliminates “Site Commission” Kickbacks
- From the Editor
- Three BOP Prisoners Sentenced for Murder of “Whitey” Bulger at West Virginia Lockup
- Missouri Prisoner Executed After Making—and Losing—New Plea Deal
- At Oklahoma Lockup: Deputy Warden Fired and Arrested in Smuggling Scheme, Guards Charged in Prisoner’s Assault
- Alabama Prisoner Disciplined for Lying When Guard Cleared of Sexual Assault Allegation
- Three Former Rikers Island Guards Among Five Ex-Employees Charged in Massive Smuggling Scheme
- DOJ Opens Investigation Into Sex Abuse at Two California Women’s Prisons
- Advanced Correctional Healthcare Ends Two Suits Over Deaths at Ohio Jail
- Crucial Surveillance Video Missing in Nevada Prisoner’s Homicide Caused by Guards
- Texas Holds 1 in 41 Prisoners in Solitary Confinement
- Maine State Prison Warden Replaced As Misconduct Allegations Investigated
- Second Circuit: New York Prisoner’s Religious Discrimination Need Not Show a “Substantial” Burden of Beliefs, by Douglas Ankney
- Missouri Prisoners Losing Reentry Money to “Incarceration Reimbursement”
- Mistrial for Vermont Sheriff Who Kicked Shackled Detainee
- Georgia Guard Gets 15 Years for Using One Prisoner to Assault Another
- $1.8 Million Jury Award for San Diego Jail Overdose Death, by Matthew Clarke
- More Alabama Prisoners Murdered in Overcrowded Lockups
- Paternity Questions Dog Miami Jail Birth
- Federal Watchdog, SCOTUS Fail to Limit Solitary Confinement Abuses, by Douglas Ankney, Anthony Accurso
- America’s Prison Profiteers from Colonial Times Until Now, by Douglas Ankney
- Unequal Before the Law, by Stephanie Woodard
- South Carolina Prison Guard Supervisor Charged With Taking Over $219,000 in Bribes to Smuggle Cellphones
- North Carolina Expands Supervision for Mentally Ill Probationers, by Anthony Accurso
- Alaska Supreme Court: DOC Can’t Unilaterally Redefine ‘Parole Release Date’, by Douglas Ankney
- New TV Show Dramatizes Prisoner’s Re-entry
- Sixth Circuit Sets Up Circuit Split with Ruling on Michigan Prisoner’s PLRA Exhaustion Dispute
- Mentally Ill Detainee Allegedly “Stomped” In the Head By South Carolina Jailer, by Anthony Accurso
- Watchdog Calls for Hawaii Prisons, Jails to Stop Using Restraint Chairs
- Seventh Circuit Avoids Deciding Whether Wisconsin Statute of Limitations Tolls from Prisoner’s Incident or Grievances, by David Reutter
- Parole Denied for Indigenous Activist Leonard Peltier
- Florida Reentry “Success” Story: Convicted Embezzler Promoted to Oversee Miami-Dade County Contracts
- Ohio Pays $725,000 to Survivors of Two Prisoners Beaten to Death by Lying Guards
- Rural Washington County Shutters Its Jail
- Two Wrongful Tennessee Convictions Result in Payouts Over $1 Million
- Massachusetts Appeals Court Revives Prisoners’ Challenge to DOC Trust Account Policy Change, by Douglas Ankney
- Rural Areas Increasingly Reliant on Imprisoned Emergency Responders
- Houston Detainees Shipped to Private Jails in Mississippi and Louisiana, by Anthony Accurso
- California Bar Accuses L.A. Lawyer of Deceiving Prisoners Seeking Resentencing
- Alabama Warden and Wife Busted for Making “Magic” Mushrooms
- Illinois Pays $3 Million for Subjecting Prisoners to Degrading Mass Strip Search, by Anthony Accurso
- Transgender BOP Prisoner in Arizona Wins $10,243 for Guard’s Negligence
- Former California Jail Guards Plead Guilty to Fatal Beating of Mentally Ill Detainee
- Minnesota’s $100 Million-Per-Year Civil Commitment Program Has No “Discernible Impact” on Sex Crimes
- $7.25 Million Paid for Psychotic Detainee’s Suicide After 20 Days in Solitary at Indiana Jail
- Federal Prisoner Will Appear on Alaska Congressional Ballot
- Iowa Qualified Immunity Law Lets County Off the Hook for Guard’s Sex Abuse of Jail Detainee
- Impoverished Ohio County Gets New Jail Space After Settling Suit for Bloody Detainee Assault
- Indiana Sheriff Pleads Guilty to Corruption, County Pays $328,000 to Jail Detainees for “Night of Terror”, by Douglas Ankney
- Third Circuit Finds Relation-Back Rule Misapplied to Philadelphia Prisoner’s “Crappy” Ordeal Lawsuit, by David Reutter
- Colorado Prisoner Forces Correctional Health Partners to Treat His Colon Disease, by Douglas Ankney
- Florida Court of Appeals Reinstates Voter Fraud Charges Against Ex-Felons
- Ninth Circuit Provides Cover to Oregon Governor for Prioritizing Guards Over Prisoners for COVID-19 Vaccine, by Douglas Ankney
- Suspended South Carolina Sheriff Acquitted of Using Excessive Force on Jail Detainee
- Nailing Down “Top Cop” Kamala Harris on Criminal Justice Reform
- Prisoners Reportedly Locked in Showers in Oklahoma, Florida, by David Reutter
- CDCR Slammed for Reclassifying Staff Misconduct Allegations as Routine Grievances, by Anthony Accurso
- Maryland Extends Contract with YesCare Despite Bankruptcy of Predecessor Corizon Health
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- News in Brief
More from Douglas Ankney:
- Pregnant Women Detained in Jail: The Hideous Story of In-Custody Births, May 1, 2026
- Idaho DOC Director Denies Verified Report of Rampant Sexual Abuse of Women Prisoners by Staff, May 1, 2026
- Fourth Circuit Announces Defendant Has Standing to Appeal Based Solely on Rogers–Singletary Claim of a “Material Discrepancy Between” Written and Orally Articulated Judgment at Sentencing, May 1, 2026
- Illinois Jail Reprimanded for Denying Detainees Mail Based on Media Content, P.O. Box Return Address, Settles Detainees’ Suit with $111,825 Payment of Legal Fees, May 1, 2026
- Sixth Circuit Announces Federal Coercion and Enticement Statute Requires Knowledge of Victim’s Minor Status, Deepening Circuit Split, May 1, 2026
- Oklahoma Supreme Court: Jail Trust Cannot Withhold Requested Records under Law Enforcement Exemption of ORA, May 1, 2026
- Delaware Supreme Court Announces Adoption of ABA Standard 3-6.5(b) Governing Prosecutors’ Opening Statements, Reverses Murder Convictions Based on Prosecutor’s References to Co-Defendant’s Guilty Plea, May 1, 2026
- Tenth Circuit Holds Prior California Child Pornography Conviction Does Not Trigger Federal Mandatory Minimum Because State Statute Encompasses Conduct Beyond Federal Definition Under Categorical Approach, April 1, 2026
- Kentucky Supreme Court Clarifies Parole Board May Delegate Final Revocation Hearings to Administrative Law Judges but Holds Due Process Requires Parolees Be Permitted to File Exceptions to ALJ Findings Before Board Renders a Final Revocation Decision, April 1, 2026
- New York Court of Appeals Holds Generic Physical Description Insufficient to Justify Pursuit in Mistaken Identity Case, and Suspect’s Flight Cannot Support Reasonable Suspicion Absent Evidence He Knew He Was Fleeing Law Enforcement, April 1, 2026
More from these topics:
- $667,000 Awarded to Muslim Missouri Prisoners Pepper-Sprayed for Praying, April 1, 2026. Religious Discrimination, Pepper Spray/Tear Gas, Religious Practices, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Deliberate Indifference.
- $4,652 for Jewish Nevada Prisoner Denied Passover Meal, Jan. 1, 2026. Religious Discrimination, Food, Settlements, First Amendment, rights, Dismissal.
- Eighth Circuit Orders Preliminary Injunction Requiring Minnesota to Reinstate Program Teaching Biblical “Authentic Manhood”, Nov. 1, 2025. Religious Discrimination, Injunctions, Interlocutory Appeals, Protected Speech, Religious Freedom/Worship, Prison Regulations.
- $95,000 Paid to Nevada Prisoner Denied Muslim Prayer; Pending Cases Allege Continued Discrimination Against Non-Protestants, Aug. 1, 2025. Religious Discrimination, Denial of Religious Services, Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA), Free Exercise Clause.
- Wiccan Nevada Prisoner Wins 18-Year Fight for Religious Items, July 15, 2025. Religious Discrimination, Denial of Religious Services, Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA).
- Ninth Circuit Reinstates Religious Exercise Claim from Arizona “Christian-Israelite” Prisoner Denied Passover Meal, June 1, 2025. Religious Discrimination, Religious Diet, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights.
- Fifth Circuit Reinstates Baha’i Texas Prisoner’s Dietary Claim, June 1, 2025. Religious Discrimination, Religious Diet, Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA).
- Muslim Prisoners Face Price-Gouging, April 1, 2025. Religious Discrimination, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Religious Practices, Religious Property.
- Ninth Circuit Greenlights Muslim Hawaii Prisoner’s Challenge to Early-Served Ramadan Meals, Jan. 15, 2025. Religious Discrimination, Religious Diet.
- BOP Settles Muslim Prisoner’s Religious Discrimination and Medical Denial Claims at Colorado Supermax, Dec. 15, 2024. Religious Discrimination, Systemic Medical Neglect, Settlements, Bureau of Prisons (BOP).

