In Elfand v. Sonoma County Men's Adult Detention Facility, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 63787 (ND CA, June 13, 2011), a California federal district court dismissed, but granted a motion to file an amended complaint, in a suit in which a Jewish inmate claimed that he was required to wait for over a month before being placed on the prison's kosher meal plan.
In Jones v. Lorady, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 64672 (MD PA, June 17, 2011), a Pennsylvania federal district court dismissed for failure to exhaust administrative remedies an inmate's claim that he was transferred from a prison in Pennsylvania to one in Virginia which refused to honor his religious exemption that allowed him to wear a beard.
In Palmer v. Rustin, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 65678 (WD PA, June 21, 2011), a Pennsylvania federal district court dismissed with leave to amend a Muslim prisoners claim that his free exercise rights were violated when on two occasions he was denied the right to attend religious services, apparently because of identification issues.
In Dobbins v. Cummins, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 65425 (MD AL, June 20, 2011), an Alabma federal district court adopted a magistrate's recommendations (2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 65724, May 23, 2011) and dismissed an inmate's complaint that his rights were violated by prison policy that bars inmates assigned to the prison health care unit from attending church services. Prison authorities said the purpose of the ban was to protect the health of all inmates.
In Kohn v. Coleman, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 63960 (D SC, June 6, 2011), a South Carolina federal district court adopted a magistrate's recommendations (2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 66009, May 4, 2011) and dismissed an inmate's complaint that while his dorm was on cell restriction for two days, he was not allowed to attend religious services. Plaintiff had asked for $30,000 in damages.
In Muhammad v. Sisto, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 66445 (ED CA, June 21, 2011), an inmate sued claiming that prison officials prevented him from fasting for Ramadan. A California federal magistrate judge recommended that plaintiff's in form pauperis status be revoked because he had filed nearly a dozen previous actions that had been dismissed as frivolous or for failure to state a claim. Under the recommendation, unless plaintiff pays the filing fee, the complaint in the current case will be dismissed.
In Porter v. Beard, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 66371 (WD PA, June 22, 2011), a Pennsylvania federal district court accepted a magistrate's recommendations (2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 66374, May 19, 2011) and permitted an inmate to move ahead with a claim that during a cell search a prison guard improperly handled his Native American Medicine Bag and threw its contents into a garbage bin.
In Frohwerk v. Armstrong, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 67504 (ND IN, June 20, 2011), an Indiana federal district court dismissed an inmate's complaint that on one occasion he was woken up by a correctional officer who told him: "Get up and go to church if you want to eat, because there ain't no lunch today! . . . Go get your cookies!" The court said that this type of isolated incident does not amount to a 1st Amendment violation.
