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Recent Prisoner Free Exercise Cases

By Howard M. Friedman

In Desimone v. Bartow, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 48689 (ED WI, June 10, 2009), a Wisconsin federal district court rejected an inmate's claims that his free exercise rights protected by RLUIPA were infringed when authorities seized various journals and documents written in Atlantean. The court held that while plaintiff's "religious conscience may impel him to separate himself from his peers ... through writing in an alien alphabet, he has failed to ... show that the proscription on writing in Atlantean creates a substantial burden on his right to exercise his religion. Further ... the policy prohibiting writing in Atlantean is the least restrictive means available to advance a compelling governmental interest."

In Elock v. Trancoso, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 49731 (CD IL, June 15, 2009), an Illinois federal district court dismissed for failure to exhaust administrative remedies an inmate's complaint that authorities searched her cell and threw away two of her prayer books. The court also expressed doubt that plaintiff could show a violation of her constitutional rights.

In Levy v. Holinka, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 49586 (WD WI, June 11, 2009), a Wisconsin federal district court permitted an inmate who followed the Hebrew Israelite faith to move ahead with free exercise, RFRA, establishment clause and equal protection challenges to federal prison authorities' refusal to permit him to observe his high holidays and to wear a kufi.

In Fletcher v. Vandyne, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 49877 (SD OH, June 11, 2009), an Ohio federal magistrate judge dismissed, for lack of evidence, an inmate's claim that prison authorities violated RLUIPA when they refused to serve him non-pork based products several times in the same week.

Full post as published by Religion Clause on June 21, 2009 (boomark / email).