In Richardson v. Clarke, (4th Cir., Nov. 7, 2022), the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals held that a prison's former policy that required inmates to remove head coverings, including religious head coverings, in certain areas of the prison imposed a substantial burden on plaintiff's religious exercise. The court remanded the case to the district court for consideration of the applicability of RLUIPA's safe harbor that allows prisons to avoid liability under RLUIPA by changing the policy or practice that imposes a substantial burden or by providing exemptions from it.
