Cert. Denied In RLUIPA Prisoner Free Exercise Case

The U.S. Supreme Court today denied certiorari in Thunderhorse v. Pierce, (Docket No. 09-1353, cert. denied 1/10/11) (Order List). In the case, the 5th Circuit rejected a RLUIPA claim by a Native American inmate, upholding prison restrictions denying him permission to grow his hair, prohibiting him from performing pipe ceremonies in his cell, and limiting vendors from whom he could buy a headband. (See prior posting.) The petition for review (via Scotus blog), focusing on the prison's grooming rule, asserts that there is a split in circuits on the question of how much deference to give to prison officials under RLUIPA in deciding whether the government has used the least restrictive means to achieve a compelling interest.