In Ruiz v. Nevada Department of Corrections, (9th Cir., Oct. 20, 2025), the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a district court's decision denying a request by a Messianic Jewish inmate that the prison furnish him a diet of organic meats, vegetables, and fruit, instead of the common fare religious diet generally provided to Jewish inmates. The court said in part:
The district court acted within its discretion by denying Ruiz’s request.... The free exercise claim failed because the defendant established that denial of the organic diet was reasonably related to legitimate interests of keeping the costs of meals within budget and simplifying the administrative process of meal service.... For the RLUIPA claim, defendants established that they used the least restrictive means of furthering compelling interests of providing cost-efficient, simplified food service for all religions within the budget provided by the legislature.
