In Doe v. Rausch, (MD TN, Feb. 16, 2022), a Tennessee federal district court dismissed a plaintiff's claim that subjecting him to the Tennessee Sex Offender Registration Act violates his free exercise rights. The Act, among other things, prohibits registered offenders from being on the grounds of a private or parochial school. Plaintiff contended that the Act "has the effect of prohibiting his presence in a building of worship because most Jewish Synagogues and Community Centers in Tennessee have schools on their grounds." The court rejected this contention, accepting defendant's argument that the free exercise clause does not relieve plaintiff from the obligation to comply with a neutral law of general applicability.
