Court Orders Access for Clergy to ICE Facility on Ash Wednesday

In Coalition for Spiritual and Public Leadership v. Noem, (ND IL, Feb. 12, 2026), an Illinois federal district court issued a preliminary injunction requiring federal immigration authorities to allow plaintiffs, Catholic clergy, access on Ash Wednesday (Feb. 18) to the ICE facility in Broadview, Illinois. The court agreed that denial of access likely substantially burdens plaintiffs' religious exercise in violation of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The court said in part:

Plaintiffs argue that prayer and ministry to the migrants and detainees at Broadview is an important religious practice.  Defendants concede that “ministering to vulnerable Catholic immigrants is part of [plaintiffs’] religious exercise,” but argue that doing so at Broadview “is itself not essential to the practice.”  RFRA requires a court to analyze if a government practice substantially burdens a person’s exercise of religion, not whether the religious practice burdened is “essential.”

The Hill reports on the decision.

Child Abuse Claim Against Archdiocese Moves Ahead

In Doe XXV v. Archdiocese of New York, (NY Sup.Ct. NY Cty., Jan. 21, 2026), a New York state trial court denied a motion to dismiss a suit under the Child Victims Act in which plaintiff alleged that he was sexually abused as a child by a janitor at a Catholic school operated by the Archdiocese. The court rejected defendant's free exercise defense, saying in part:

Plaintiff’s cause of action asserts liability against the Archdiocese for the negligent hiring, retention and supervision of Tremaroli, a janitor. The Archdiocese fails to demonstrate why the present dispute cannot be adjudicated “solely upon the application of neutral principles of law, without reference to religious principles”....

The court also rejected other defenses raised by the Archdiocese, saying in part: 

The Archdiocese further argues that it owed Plaintiff no duty under theories of negligent hiring, retention and supervision because the Archdiocese did not directly hire, retain or supervise Tremaroli. The Court disagrees.  

Generally, an element of negligent hiring, retention and supervision is that the defendant was the employer of the alleged tortfeasor. However ... agency relationships between a junior organization and a senior organization may impute liability onto a senior organization when the senior organization could also have been responsible for the hiring, retention or supervision of an employee....

Tremaroli was ... employed as a janitor at the Church; however, his employment as conditional upon the authority of the pastor, who was appointed to the Church by the Archdiocese. The Archdiocese has thus failed to eliminate triable issues of fact that it lacked an employer/employee-like relationship with Tremaroli....

In any event, issues of fact also exist as to the Archdiocese’s notice of Tremaroli’s propensity for abuse or actual abuse of children....

Thus, if certain employees at the Church or School were “acting on the . . . Archdiocese defendants’ behalf” when they learned of the subject abuse, their knowledge would be imputed to the Archdiocese....

Child Evangelism Fellowship Sues School District Over Discriminatory Treatment

Suit was filed this week in an Illinois federal district court by Child Evangelism Fellowship alleging that fees charged to it for after-school use of school facilities and its exclusion from literature distribution forums and Backpack Nights forum violate its rights under the 1st and 14th Amendments as well as the Illinois Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The complaint (full text) in Child Evangelism Fellowship of Illinois, Inc. v. Moline-Coal Valley Unified School District #40, (CD IL, filed 2/10/2026), alleges in part:

For more than five years, Defendants have categorized CEF as a “Category II” church and church-affiliated group, treating them differently than similarly situated nonreligious organizations. Defendants’ discriminatory policies target religious organizations like CEF’s Good News Club, compel them to pay discriminatory facility use fees, prevent them from distributing literature to students to take home to their parents, and bar them from Backpack Nights. In other words, Defendants have unconstitutionally relegated CEF to constitutional orphan status and discriminatory treatment in all forums available for similarly situated organizations in violation of the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution....

Liberty Counsel issued a press release announcing the filing of the lawsuit.

Carrie Prejean Boller Removed from Religious Liberty Commission for "Hijacking" Antisemitism Hearing

Texas Lt. Governor Dan Patrick, chair of President Trump's Religious Liberty Commission announced on X yesterday:

Carrie Prejean Boller has been removed from President Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission. No member of the Commission has the right to hijack a hearing for their own personal and political agenda on any issue. This is clearly, without question, what happened Monday in our hearing on antisemitism in America. This was my decision.

OSV News reported on the aspects of the hearing that led to Boller's ouster, saying in part: 

... Prejean Boller, a former Miss California USA, began a tense exchange with witnesses by asking if “speaking out about what many Americans view as a genocide in Gaza should be treated as antisemitic?” ...

Prejean Boller’s line of questioning also included her argument that “Catholics do not embrace Zionism, just so you know. So are all Catholics antisemites?” ...

Prejean Boller, who was wearing a pin that jointly displayed U.S. and Palestinian flags, went on to press witnesses on whether they would consider her an antisemite for not supporting the political state of Israel, which she called “a foreign country.”

Elsewhere in the hearing, Prejean Boller also had a tense exchange with Seth Dillon, CEO of conservative Christian satire website The Babylon Bee. Dillon took aim at conservative media figures who he said have failed to speak out against antisemitism, such as that from podcaster Candace Owens. 

When Prejean Boller argued that Owens — who became Catholic in 2024 — was not an antisemite, Dillon replied, “You should look up more of her statements.”... 

(See prior related posting.)

UPDATE: In a Feb. 11 response on X, Carrie Prejean Boller said in part:

The Commission was created by Executive Order of President Donald J. Trump. Members were appointed by the President and serve as his appointees. Nothing in the Executive Order grants you the power to remove presidential appointees. Unless and until I receive written notice from the President of the United States requesting my removal, I will continue to defend religious freedom for all religions on this Commission.

House Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Supreme Court's Decision in Mahmoud v. Taylor

Yesterday, the House Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education held a hearing titled Defending Faith and Families Against Government Overreach: Mahmoud v. Taylor.  A video of the entire hearing, written prepared statements of the subcommittee chairman and four witnesses, as well as the Committee's "Hearing Recap" are all available here on the Subcommittee's website. Three of the witnesses strongly supported the Supreme Court's Mahmoud decision, while one of the witnesses argued that Mahmoud went too far in permitting parental opt outs. UPI reported on the hearing, saying in part that "Republicans expressed concern ... about school districts ignoring the ruling, while Democrats voiced fears that the ruling condoned discrimination." [Thanks to Zalman Rothschild for the lead.]

RLUIPA Claim for Polluting Burial Sites of Enslaved Ancestors May Move Ahead

In Inclusive Louisiana v. St. James Parish, (ED LA, Feb. 9, 2026), a Louisiana federal district court refused to dismiss claims against St. James Parish contending that plaintiffs have been harmed by land use decisions that have concentrated polluting industrial sites in majority black areas between Baton Rouge and New Orleans. The affected area has a particularly high cancer rate. Plaintiffs are an advocacy organization, a Baptist church whose members claim descent from formerly enslaved people, and a faith-based organization advocating for an end to petrochemical industries in the area. The court allowed plaintiffs to move ahead with claims under the 13th Amendment, 14th Amendment and the Louisiana Constitution.  It also allowed plaintiffs to move ahead with their claim that defendants' actions have violated the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, saying in part:

... Plaintiffs in the case allege that Defendants “have implemented land use regulations in a manner that imposes a substantial burden on Plaintiffs’ religious exercise.” ... Plaintiffs specifically designate three of Defendants’ acts that “have burdened Plaintiffs’ members’ ability to pray upon the unmarked cemeteries of enslaved ancestors by permitting the construction of industrial facilities upon these cemeteries.”...

Defendants contend that Plaintiffs do not meet the definition of “claimants” under the statute because they have not alleged an ownership or other property interest in the land at issue in the case....

... Plaintiffs allege that “plantation owners were legally required to set aside land for burying the people they enslaved, . . . that graves were often marked by trees to identify them for loved ones and descendant communities, and preserved by laborers and farmers.”.... These allegations are more than sufficient to create a plausible claim that these pieces of land were “dedicated” as cemeteries for their ancestors, cemeteries which have since “been transformed into an industrial site, to be exploited for material gain.” However, even absent these specific and well-researched allegations, the fact that the plantation owners buried the bodies of the people whom they enslaved on these plots of land seems sufficient to constitute an intention to dedicate. Therefore, the Court agrees that Plaintiffs have a property interest in the plots of land at issue—the unmarked cemeteries of enslaved people on the Formosa and SLM plots—to assert a plausible claim under the RLUIPA’s Substantial Burden clause....

The second claim under RLUIPA has been brought against Defendants by only one Plaintiff, Mount Triumph Baptist Church. Specifically, Mount Triumph alleges that Defendants have implemented land use regulations that protect Catholic and majority-white churches from industrial development through required buffer zones, but that also permit such development in the immediate vicinity of majority-black churches with no such protection. Because Defendants have not specifically moved to dismiss this claim, the Court does not feel the need to discuss this claim, other than to say that Mount Triumph has alleged sufficient facts to state a claim for relief that is plausible on its face....

Suit Challenges Michigan Ban on Discrimination Because of Pregnancy Termination

Last week, two pro-life organizations filed suit in federal district court against Michigan officials challenging on 1st and 14th Amendment grounds 2023 amendments to state anti-discrimination laws that prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of termination of pregnancy. The law already included a ban on discrimination on the basis of pregnancy or childbirth. The 82-page complaint (full text) in Right to Life of Michigan v. Nessel, (WD MI, filed 2/6/2026) alleges in part:

Recent changes to Michigan’s employment law force religious and pro-life groups to employ and associate with persons who do not share or live by—and may even oppose—the organizations’ beliefs on human life. This violates the First Amendment. Plaintiffs Right to Life of Michigan (Right to Life) and Pregnancy Resource Center (PRC) recruit, hire, and retain only employees who adhere to, agree to abide by, and can effectively communicate their pro-life views. This employment policy puts them at odds with Michigan’s new law. Right to Life and PRC bring this suit to ensure they can continue to serve Michiganders without diluting their pro-life views through the lukewarm or hostile hires Michigan’s law demands....

The complaint alleges seven causes of action ranging from infringing free speech and free exercise rights to infringing the right to refrain from taking human life. Zeale reports on the lawsuit.

Court Rejects Free Exercise Defense Raised by Protesters Charged With Trespass

In Hubersberger v. State of Arizona, (AZ App., Feb. 9, 2026), an Arizona state appeals court, rejecting a free exercise defense, refused to dismiss complaints charging four protesters with criminal trespass. According to the court:

 ...  Appellants, motivated by their sincerely held religious beliefs, participated in a protest against Raytheon because of its role as a weapons supplier to Israel and the bombings occurring in Gaza.  Appellants’ demonstration occurred on private property, and their stated purpose was to disrupt Raytheon’s daily operations by blocking Raytheon workers from entering the facility....

Appellants moved to dismiss the complaints against them pursuant to FERA [Arizona's Free Exercise of Religion Act], arguing that because their protest was motivated by their religious faith, their arrest and prosecution substantially burdened their free exercise of religion....

Appellants do not dispute on appeal that the government had a compelling interest to protect the peace and Raytheon’s private property rights.  We therefore only address the second prong of the FERA analysis: whether the arrest and prosecution of Appellants was the least restrictive means in which the government could have furthered its interests in this case....

We, like the superior court, find nothing on the record to indicate that Appellants would have left Raytheon’s private property without state intervention....

Appellants next assert ... that the arrest alone was sufficient to further the government’s interest, therefore their continued prosecution necessarily does not meet the least restrictive means test....

We also conclude that analyzing whether the prosecutor should or should not bring charges “would plunge courts far too deep into the business of reviewing the most basic exercises of prosecutorial discretion.”... 

Religious Liberty Commission Holds Hearing On Antisemitism

The Religious Liberty Commission yesterday held a hearing on combating antisemitism and upholding religious freedom. A video of the full 5-hour hearing, held at the Museum of the Bible, is available here from C-Span. JNS reported on the hearing, saying in part:

A U.S. Religious Liberty Commission hearing on antisemitism in Washington, D.C., on Monday featured testimony about the challenges facing Jews in American society that digressed, at times, into questions about whether it is antisemitic to oppose Israel.

The commissioners, whom U.S. President Donald Trump appointed in May, questioned witnesses from religious organizations, college campuses and the administration about their experiences and possible legal and cultural remedies to Jewish bigotry during four hours of panels.

One of the commissioners, Carrie Prejean Boller, a former Miss California who is now a conservative activist and commentator, peppered witnesses about Israel’s conduct in Gaza and her interpretation of the Roman Catholic position on Zionism....

Lawsuit Challenges Makeup and Operation of Trump's Religious Liberty Commission

Yesterday, Muslim, Sikh, Hindu and Interfaith organizations filed suit challenging the legality of the Religious Liberty Commission that President Trump created last May. The complaint (full text) in The Interfaith Alliance v. Trump, (SD NY, filed 2/9/2026), contends that the Commission violates the Federal Advisory Committee Act, alleging in part:

3. This case challenges the composition and secrecy of the Religious Liberty Commission. While this body is ostensibly designed to defend “religious liberty for all Americans” and celebrate “religious pluralism” it actually represents only a single “Judeo-Christian” viewpoint. It held its first three meetings at the Museum of the Bible and has closed its meetings with a Christian prayer “in Jesus’ name.” Only one of its members is not Christian and the Christian members do not represent the full diversity of the Christian faith. The Commission’s meetings have repeatedly referenced the belief that the United States was founded as a “Judeo-Christian nation” and the membership reflects that viewpoint. All members of the Commission advocate for increased religiosity, and specifically their brand of “Judeo-Christian” religiosity, in public life....

8. The Commission has also disregarded basic transparency requirements, including by failing to disclose transcripts, agendas, and other materials that would allow Plaintiffs and the public to follow and understand the Commission’s work.....

The suit asks the court, among other relief, to:

Order Defendants to employ good faith efforts to appoint a properly qualified representative from the excluded viewpoints; ...

Enjoin Defendants to attach to any reports or recommendations produced by the Commission a disclaimer stating that the report was produced in violation of FACA’s requirement that the Commission’s membership be fairly balanced in terms of the points of view represented....

Interfaith Alliance issued a press release announcing the filing of the lawsuit.

Arizona Trial Court Strikes Down 3 Laws Restricting Abortions

In Isaacson v. State of Arizona, (AZ Super. Ct., Feb. 2, 2026), an Arizona trial court struck down three Arizona statutes that restrict a woman's ability to obtain an abortion.  A 2024 Amendment to Arizona's state constitution prohibits the state from restricting pre-viability abortions unless the law is for the limited purpose of maintaining the health of the person seeking an abortion and does not infringe on that person's autonomous decision making. The court held that this provision invalidates (1) Arizona's ban on seeking an abortion because of a fetal abnormality; (2) Arizona's requirement a physician perform an ultrasound and deliver state-mandated information to a person seeking an abortion 24 hours before carrying out the procedure; and (3) Arizona's ban on use of telemedicine to provide abortion inducing drugs.

Arizona's Attorney General in a press release said in part:

Today's ruling is a major victory for Arizona women, families, and their doctors. The court has affirmed what we've known all along: the abortion restrictions challenged in this case are unconstitutional.

According to AP, Republican legislative leaders had intervened in the case to defend the restrictions. Senate President Warren Petersen's office said the decision will be appealed.

ACLU issued a press release announcing the decision. [Thanks to Scott Mange for the lead.]

Ministerial Exception Bars Student Chaplain's Title IX and FLSA Claims

In Davenport v. Episcopal Health Services, Inc., (ED NY, Feb. 5, 2026), a New York federal district court held that the ministerial exception doctrine bars Title IX and Fair Labor Standards Act claims by a student chaplain in an Episcopal hospital. The court said in part:

Plaintiff Archbishop Russell Davenport served as a chaplain at St. John’s Episcopal Hospital South Shore [EHS]... as part of the hospital’s clinical pastoral education program.  But he claims the hospital never paid him for spiritual and clinical counseling that he performed for patients after his shift ended.  He separately claims that the hospital improperly rejected his sexual harassment complaint against a fellow chaplain but suspended him when another employee filed a complaint against him....

Plaintiff contends that EHS is not a religious group because the complaint “makes no allegations about the religious origins or continuing religious purpose of the hospital.” ...

Like the Department of Pastoral Care, the CPE program offers “pastoral services to patients and community members.” ...  Its chaplains perform religious rituals and rites, worship with patients, and offer spiritual counsel....  The CPE’s work therefore also vests in Defendants a critical aspect of its religious entity—even if its services are not strictly Episcopalian.  That indisputably religious service renders St. John’s and EHS religious groups....

Plaintiff insists that the ministerial exception does not apply to students.  But he adduces no authority why the exception excludes those who administer religious services simply because they obtain “professional training and education for ministry” part-time....

The ministerial exception applies to Plaintiff’s wage-and-hour claims.  Just “as the initial function of selecting a minister is a matter of church administration and government, so are the functions which accompany such a selection,” including “determination of a minister’s salary.”...

Recent Articles of Interest

From SSRN:

• Joanmarie Davoli, Infusing Catholicism In Teaching And Writing, (December 01, 2025).
• Michael Quinlan, NSW Greens Introduce a Bill of Rights to Protect Their Preferred Rights, (News Weekly Issue No. 3204, December 20, 2025 12-13).
• Angshul Majumdar, Halakhah as a Gödelian System: Why Oral Law, Disagreement, and Authority are Structurally Necessary, (January 20, 2026).
• Robert Katz, Antisemitism and the Law, (Carolina Academic Press, 2025).
• Zachary Price, Constitutional Symmetry in the 2024-2025 Term:  Mahmoud and Skrmetti's Missteps, (January 31, 2026).
• Gagas Tri Anggoro, Inclusive Human Rights: A Paradigm for Dignity in Diversity, (January 10, 2026).
• Robert Katz, The Pearl and Troy Feibel Lecture on Judaism and Law: "American Law's Jewish Question: Religion, Race, and Free Speech in an Age of Campus Antisemitism", (January 31, 2026).
• Nancy A. McLaughlin, Donor Standing To Enforce Charitable Gifts In The 21st Century (February 03, 2026).
• Jacqueline Stevens, How John Searle and the Chicago Supermob Took Out Northwestern University: The Case of the 'Mislaid' Methodists and Proposals to Reform Nonprofit Laws, (January 20, 2026).
• Daniel B. Rice, Tradition Without Text?, (75 Duke Law Journal Online __ (forthcoming 2026)).
• Lyric Helena Emerson, Discrimination in 2025: Racism, Islamophobia, Gender, and the Reorganization of Social Hierarchy, (January 30, 2026).

From SSRN (Biblical Interpretation):

• Essien Oku Essien, Apocalyptic Diagnostics of the Divine Letters to the Seven Churches in Asia Minor, (January 23, 2026).
• Essien Oku Essien, A Constructive Reading Of Matthew 16:18 In Canonical And Patristic Perspective (January 21, 2026).
• Dov Fischer, The Value of Silence and Purposeful Communication: Lessons from Genesis (37:13), (December 07, 2025).

From SSRN (Islamic Law):

• Arafat Rahman Akram & Sharat Fatema Angelic, Admissibility of Iqrar in Proving Criminal Cases: A Comparative Study of Malaysia, Pakistan, and Brunei, (January 10, 2026).
• Seyyed Abdol Hojjat Moghadas Nian, AqilaSadat MoghadasNian & Moghadas Nian SeyyedAbdolHamed, Optimizing Digital Transformation in Waqf Institutions: A Strategic KPI Framework for Enhanced Transparency and Sustainability, (April 19, 2025).
• Dr. Mohamed El Bachir Berroho, Waqf and Trust: A Comparative Analysis, (October 21, 2024).

From SmartCILP:

• Iza Hussin, Book Review. Between Empires: Arab, Asian, and European Legal Orders in the Nineteenth-Century Indian Ocean. Sovereigns of the Sea: Omani Ambition in the Age of Empire, by Seema Alavi, 50 Law & Social Inquiry 935-940 (2025).

Texas AG Sues to Close Down CAIR and Muslim Brotherhood in State

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed suit in a Texas state trial court against CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood asking for an injunction barring these organizations from engaging in any activities in the state of Texas. The complaint (full text) in State of Texas v. Muslim Brotherhood, (TX Dist. Ct., filed 2/5/2026), alleges in part:

The Muslim Brotherhood is a radical terrorist organization that exists to usurp governmental power and establish dominion through Sharia law. For three decades, it has covertly operated in the United States under the name “CAIR”—the Council on American-Islamic Relations—as its American affiliate. The group is not peaceful. It is not tolerant. It does not respect the freedom to practice other religions or sects, including Christianity and Judaism. Instead, ... the Muslim Brotherhood ... has systematically engaged in political assassinations and terrorist attacks to accomplish its goal of a global Islamic caliphate....

Last November, the governor of Texas issued a Proclamation declaring CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood to be a Foreign Terrorist and Transnational Criminal Organizations under Texas law. (See prior posting.)

The Texas Attorney General has issued a press release announcing the filing of the lawsuit.

DOJ Settles RLUIPA Zoning Dispute with Pennsylvania Town

In June 2025, the Justice Department instituted an investigation of alleged RLUIPA violations by the Borough of Kingston, Pennsylvania. At issue has been the application of a 2023 Kingston zoning ordinance to attempts by the Orthodox Jewish Chabad organization to locate sites for places of worship and other religious facilities for its growing population. (See prior related posting.) On Wednesday, the Justice Department announced that it had reached a settlement agreement with Kingston.  To implement the agreement, the government filed a lawsuit against Kingston and along with it filed a proposed consent order (full text). The complaint (full text) in United States v. Borough of Kingston, (MD PA, filed 2/4/2026), alleges in part:

107. Kingston acted in violation of RLUIPA by “impos[ing] or  implement[ing] a land use regulation in a manner that treats a religious assembly or institution on less than equal terms with a nonreligious assembly or institution.” 42  U.S.C. § 2000cc(b)(l)....

110. Kingston’s enactment and application of the 2023 Zoning Ordinance, and Kingston’s conduct described in this Complaint, constitute the imposition or implementation of a land use regulation that unreasonably limits religious assemblies, institutions, or structures within a jurisdiction in violation of RLUIPA, 42 U.S.C. § 2000cc(b)(3)(B). 

 The consent order requires Kingston to make various amendments to its zoning ordinance.

Trump Announces May Event to "Rededicate America as One Nation Under God"

President Trump yesterday delivered lengthy remarks (full transcript) at the National Prayer Breakfast held at the Washington Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C. His remarks included the following announcement:

In the last 12 months, young Americans attended church at nearly twice the rate as they did four years ago.... Some churches are seeing a 30 percent, 50 percent, or even 70 percent increase in the number of converts, and also the number of people going to church every week.

To support this exciting renewal this morning, I’m pleased to announce that on May 17th — 26th — that we’re inviting Americans from all across the country to come together on our National Mall to pray, to give thanks, and to — We are going to do something that everyone said, like, that’s tough. We’re going to rededicate America as one nation under God.

Education Department Issues Guidance on School Prayer

Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Education issued a 9-page "Guidance on Constitutionally Protected Prayer and Religious Expression in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools" (full text). An accompanying Press Release included this summary:

Key Points of the Guidance:

• Students, teachers, and other school officials have a right to pray in school as an expression of individual faith, as long as they’re not doing so on behalf of the school.
• Public schools may not sponsor prayer nor coerce or pressure students to pray. For example, a school principal may not lead a prayer at a mandatory school assembly.
• Public schools can regulate student speech that “materially disrupts classwork or involves substantial disorder or invasion of the rights of others.” For example, a student can’t pray out loud during math class in a way that prevents others from learning, provided such disruptions are handled consistently with other forms of speech.
• Religious speech should be treated the same as secular speech. For example, an essay with religious content should be graded by the same academic standards as a secular essay of similar quality.
• Religious student organizations should likewise be treated the same as secular student organizations. For example, if a school offers support or recognition to secular student clubs, it must provide the same support to religious student clubs.