In Campbell v. Alameida, 2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 73111 (ND CA, Sept. 25, 2006), a California federal district court rejected an inmate’s claims that the refusal to permit him to purchase and keep religious oils in his cell violated his rights under the 1st and 14th Amendments. It found that while the refusal may have violated his rights under RLUIPA, defendants had qualified immunity from damages, and no injunctive relief was available because now prison authorities were permitting plaintiff to have the requested oils.
In Jesus Christ Prison Ministry v. California Department of Corrections, 2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 73813 (ED CA, Sept. 28, 2006), a federal magistrate judge ruled that a California prison’s policy of permitting religious literature, audio tapes and CDs only from approved vendors violates the free speech and free exercise rights, as well as rights under RLUIPA, of prisoners, as well as the rights of non-approved organizations wishing to distribute religious literature.
In Long v. Boehnemann, 2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 74532 (SD TX, Oct. 12, 2006), a Texas federal district court dismissed a suit alleging that a county jail’s kitchen manager denied plaintiff reasonable provisions during Ramadan. The court found that plaintiff had failed to exhaust his administrative remedies, that his transfer made his claims for injunctive relief moot, that federal law bars monetary damages absent a physical injury, that no First Amendment violation was shown, and that RLUIPA allows recovery only against governmental entities.
In Tayr v. Wisconsin Department of Corrections, 2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 74835 (ED WI, Sept. 29, 2006), a Wisconsin federal district court rejected a Muslim prisoner's claims that he was denied the right to use his religious name and was denied a religious diet, in violation of the First Amendment and RLUIPA. The court permitted claims relating to the denial of the use of religious property to move ahead.
