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Satanist Claim Goes to Trial

Article • November 15, 1996 • from PLN November, 1996

Filed under: Injunctions, Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Qualified Immunity, Supervisory Liability, Religious Freedom, Religious Property, Religion Defined

Satanist Claim Goes to Trial by A federal district court in New York held that prison officials failed to show any legitimate penological interest in denying a Satanist the right to practice his faith in prison. Alfredo Ramirez is a New York state prisoner and a Satanist. He filed suit …

PI Granted in Haircut Claim

Article • October 15, 1996 • from PLN October, 1996

Filed under: Grooming Rules, Preliminary Injunctions/TRO's, Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Religious Grooming, Protective Custody

PI Granted in Haircut Claim by A federal district court in Kentucky granted a motion for a Preliminary Injunction (PI) to a Hasidic Jew whose claimed his religious beliefs were violated when prison officials forced him to cut his hair. Several Kentucky state prisoners in Protective Custody (PC) filed suit …

Missouri Haircut Rule Upheld under RFRA

Article • October 15, 1996 • from PLN October, 1996

Filed under: Grooming Rules, Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Religious Freedom, Religious Grooming

Missouri Haircut Rule Upheld under RFRA by Missouri Haircut Rule Upheld Under RFRA The court of appeals for the eighth circuit reversed a federal district court ruling which had held that a Missouri DOC rule requiring prisoners to have short hair and banning sweat lodges violated the Religious Freedom Restoration …

Prisoners May Be Allowed to Lead Religious Services

Article • October 15, 1996 • from PLN October, 1996

Filed under: Religious Freedom, Denial of Religious Services, Clergy

Prisoners May Be Allowed to Lead Religious Services by A federal district court in Pennsylvania ruled that a prison rule prohibiting prisoners from leading religious services may be unconstitutional. Four Muslim prisoners in a Pennsylvania state prison filed suit challenging a prison rule which prohibited prisoners from leading religious services. …

Texas Shaving Rule Declared Illegal

Article • October 15, 1996 • from PLN October, 1996

Filed under: Grooming Rules, Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Qualified Immunity, Religious Freedom, Religious Grooming

Texas Shaving Rule Declared Illegal by A federal district court in Texas ruled that a prison rule requiring prisoners be clean shaven violated a Muslim prisoner's religious rights and enjoined the rule. Johnson Lewis, a Texas state prisoner and a Muslim, filed suit claiming that prison regulations requiring that all …

Wisconsin Property Policy Violates RFRA

Article • August 15, 1996 • from PLN August, 1996

Filed under: Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Religious Freedom, Religious Property

Wisconsin Property Policy Violates RFRA by A federal district court in Wisconsin held that a state DOC policy sharply restricting prisoner property violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) when it prohibits prisoners from wearing religious jewelry. The court held that the policy did not violate the RFRA in that …

Haircut Rule May Violate Equal Protection

Article • July 15, 1996 • from PLN July, 1996

Filed under: Grooming Rules, Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Qualified Immunity, Religious Freedom, Religious Grooming

Haircut Rule May Violate Equal Protection by A federal district court in Hawaii held that a prison rule requiring that prisoners have short hair and remain clean shaven may violate the constitution's guarantee to equal protection of law and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA). Edmund Abordo, a Hawaii state …

Muslim Can't Be Punished for Refusal to Handle Pork

Article • July 15, 1996 • from PLN July, 1996

Filed under: Prison Labor, Legality of Rules, Food, Qualified Immunity, Religious Freedom, Religious Practices

Muslim Can't Be Punished for Refusal to Handle Pork by The court of appeals for the eighth circuit held that a district court erred when it granted prison officials qualified immunity for punishing a Muslim prisoner who refused to handle pork. Roosevelt Hayes is an Arkansas state prisoner and a …

No Immunity for Washington Religious Name Retaliation

Article • July 15, 1996 • from PLN July, 1996

Filed under: Qualified Immunity, Mail Regulations, Religious Freedom, Religious Names

No Immunity for Washington Religious Name Retaliation by The court of appeals for the ninth circuit held that prisoners have a clearly established right to use legally adopted religious names and prison officials were not entitled to qualified immunity for violating that right. The court also held such prisoners did …

Supervisor Liable in Retaliation Suit

Article • June 15, 1996 • from PLN June, 1996

Filed under: Retaliation for Filing Grievances, Tuberculosis, Qualified Immunity, Supervisory Liability, Mail Regulations, Postage, Religious Freedom, Religious Practices

Supervisor Liable in Retaliation Suit by A federal district court in New York held that supervisory prison officials can be found liable when they are aware of retaliation taken against prisoners but do nothing to stop it. The court dismissed claims challenging the New York DOCS practice of discontinuing free …

Attorney Fee Award Upheld in Jail Suit

Article • May 15, 1996 • from PLN May, 1996

Filed under: Attorney Fee Awards, Religious Freedom, Denial of Religious Services, Religious Property

Attorney Fee Award Upheld in Jail Suit by The court of appeals for the ninth circuit has upheld an award of attorney fees to the plaintiffs in a jail religious discrimination suit who did not win in court but who caused jail policies to be changed. The court also held …

Texas Grooming Code May Violate RFRA

Article • May 15, 1996 • from PLN May, 1996

Filed under: Grooming Rules, Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Religious Freedom, Religious Grooming

Texas Grooming Code May Violate RFRA by The court of appeals for the fifth circuit held that a district court erred in dismissing a Texas prisoner's claim that prison grooming regulations, requiring that prisoners be clean shaven and have short hair, violated his rights under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act …

Tuberculosis TRO Issued

Article • April 15, 1996 • from PLN April, 1996

Filed under: Tuberculosis, Preliminary Injunctions/TRO's, Appeals, Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Religious Freedom, Religious Practices

Tuberculosis TRO Issued by A federal district court in New York granted a prisoner's motion for a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) holding that a prison's mandatory tuberculosis (TB) test violated his religious rights. Paul Jolly, a New York state prisoner, is a Muslim. In 1991 the New York DOCS implemented …

$55,540 in Attorney Fees for RFRA Suit

Article • April 15, 1996 • from PLN April, 1996

Filed under: Attorney Fee Awards, Preliminary Injunctions/TRO's, Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Religious Freedom, Religious Grooming

$55,540 in Attorney Fees for RFRA Suit by Schlomo Helbrans, an orthodox Jew, filed suit to prevent being shaven for a photo by prison officials upon his entry into the New York prison system. He contended that being shaven would violate his religious beliefs. He prevailed on his claim when …

Michigan ACLU Protests Religious Prison College

Article • April 15, 1996 • from PLN April, 1996

Filed under: Contractor Misconduct, Discrimination, Religious Discrimination, Education, Required Religious Programming

Michigan ACLU Protests Religious Prison College by The ACLU of Michigan has sent a complaint to the attorney general's office against Spring Arbor College, which holds a $560,000 DOC contract to teach college courses at four Michigan state prisons. The complaint was filed after the school sent out letters to …

Case Updates

Article • March 15, 1996 • from PLN March, 1996

Filed under: Gender Discrimination -- Women, Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Religious Freedom, Religious Names

Case Updates by Women Prisoners : In the November, 1995, edition of PLN we reported the appeal court's decision in Pargo v. Elliot , 49 F.3d 1355 (8th Cir. 1995) in which the appeals court reversed and remanded the case for the lower court to determine whether women prisoners in …

Muslims Granted TRO

Article • March 15, 1996 • from PLN March, 1996

Filed under: Gang Policies, Preliminary Injunctions/TRO's, Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Religious Freedom, Religious Property

Muslims Granted TRO by Afederal court in New York granted a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) to Sufi Muslim prisoners which prevented the New York DOCS from implementing a policy banning the display of black Dhikr beads and banning possession of beads colored anything but black. The New York anti bead …

RFRA Case Set for Trial

Article • February 15, 1996 • from PLN February, 1996

Filed under: Civil Procedure, Mootness, Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Religious Property

RFRA Case Set for Trial by A federal district court in Pennsylvania held that a factual dispute existed as to whether a jail's policy banning detainees from wearing religious headgear substantially burdened the exercise of religion under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), 42 U.S.C. § 2000bb(b). In its ruling, …

RFRA TRO Granted

Article • December 15, 1995 • from PLN December, 1995

Filed under: Food, Preliminary Injunctions/TRO's, Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Religious Freedom, Religious Grooming, Religious Diet, Religious Property

RFRA TRO Granted by A federal district court in Arizona granted a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) to an Arizona state prisoner who filed suit seeking relief for violation of his religious rights to a Kosher diet, to long hair, a colored head covering and to maintain a vow of poverty. …

RFRA Analyzed and Applied in 10th Circuit

Article • December 15, 1995 • from PLN December, 1995

Filed under: Religious Freedom Restoration Act, Qualified Immunity, Religious Freedom, Religious Practices, Religious Property, Clergy

RFRA Analyzed and Applied in 10th Circuit by The court of appeals for the tenth circuit has issued its first ruling analyzing the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), 42 U.S.C. § 2000bb-1, holding that it may well require prison officials to provide Native American prisoners with sweat lodge facilities. Robert …