Israeli Cabinet Approves Extension of Daylight Savings Time Over Religious Opposition

The Jerusalem Post reported yesterday that Israel's cabinet has approved and sent to the Knesset for passage a bill that would extend daylight savings time until the end of October, conforming the country to the practice in Europe which ends daylight savings time on Nov. 1.  In Israel, daylight savings time has been an issue of contention between religiously observant Jews and the secular Jewish population. (See prior posting.) In the past the country ended daylight savings time in September on the weekend before Yom Kippur to make it easier to observe the 25-hour holy day fast.

Recent Articles of Interest

From SSRN:

• Caroline Mala Corbin & Steven Douglas Smith, Debate: The Contraception Mandate and Religious Freedom, (University of Pennsylvania Law Review Online, Vol. 161, No. 261, 2013).
• Michael Brody, Team Prayer in Sports: Why an Action-Based Inquiry into a Coach’s Conduct Should Prevent Courts from Following Borden’s Confusion About the Reasonable Observer, (May 21, 2013).
• Erik James Girvan & Grace M. Deason, Social Science in Law: A Psychological Case for Abandoning the 'Discriminatory Motive' under Title VII, (Cleveland State Law Review, Vol. 60, 1057 (2013)).
• Debbie Psihountas, Richard John Dippel & George Slusarz, Federal Discrimination of Married Same-Sex Couples, (June 18, 2013).
• Máiréad Enright, Preferring the Stranger? Towards an Irish Approach to Muslim Divorce Practice, ((2013) 49 Irish Jurist 65-97).

School Board Settles Claim of Religious Bias In Guidance Counselor Dismissal

Five Towns Patch reported Friday that the Lawrence, New York School District has settled for $145,000 a lawsuit brought by a former school guidance counselor who claimed that he was denied tenure and fired from his $140,000 per year job because school board members, most of whom are Orthodox Jews, thought plaintiff was anti-Orthodox. Based on the settlement, the federal case was closed on June 19. Plaintiff Jay Silverstein, who is Jewish but non-practicing, claimed his dismissal was part of the ongoing tension between Orthodox Jews who took control of the Lawrence school board in 2006 and the community's non-Orthodox residents. (See prior posting.)

Recent Prisoner Free Exercise Cases

In  Lowery v. Edmondson, (10th Cir., June 17, 2013), the 10th Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a complaint filed by an inmate who is a member of the Moorish Science Temple of America challenging an Oklahoma prison policy that prevents him from storing his fez in his cell.

In Holland v. Goord, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 85094 (D NY, June 17, 2013), a New York federal district court held that only a de minimis burden was placed on a Muslim inmate's free exercise rights when during the Ramadan fast he was required to drink some water in order to be able to produce urine for a drug test triggered by an informant's tip. The court dismissed plaintiff's due process, free exercise and RLUIPA claims. It also found qualified immunity as to damage claims against individual defendants.

In Morales v. Pallito, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 85870 (D VT, June 19, 2013), a Vermont federal district court dismissed an inmate's claim that the raising of American flags over Vermont's prisons is an establishment of religion and that it coerces inmates into worshiping the U.S. government as a deity.

In Tavares v. Amato, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 84930 (ND NY, June 18, 2013), a New York federal district court adopted a magistrate’s recommendation (2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 85436, May 14, 2013) and dismissed an inmate’s claim that his free exercise rights were violated when, as a result of being placed in involuntary protective custody, he was unable to engage in religious worship.

In Stergios v. United States, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 84462 (D ME, June 17, 2013), a Maine federal district court adopted a magistrate’s recommendation (2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 84779,  May 3, 2013), holding that petitioner could preserve for later when he was actually on supervised release his claim that restrictions on alcohol consumption during supervised release will infringe his religious freedom in connection with religions that use wine in their ceremonies.

In Jamison v. Atchison, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 86511 (SD IL, June 20, 2013), an Illinois federal district court held that an inmate could proceed with his free exercise and retaliation claims against a prison supervisor who refused to grant him a religious exemption from working on Saturday and instead moved him to non-worker housing.

In Hollins v. Curtin, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 85945 (WD MI, June 19, 2013), a Michigan federal district court denied a motion for reconsideration, rejecting the claim that his free exercise rights were infringed when he was not permitted to attend a Nation of Islam religious service because he was in segregation.

In Stepler v. Warden, Hocking Correctional Facility, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 86209 (SD OH, June 18, 2013) an Ohio federal magistrate judge recommended  permitting a Jewish inmate to proceed with his complaint regarding failure to provide a weekly prayer room and against one defendant for failure to provide kosher meals with sufficient calories. A number of other claims regarding kosher food and anti-Semitic verbal abuse were dismissed.

Russian Region Bans Religious Clothing and Symbols In Schools

In Russia, the governor of the Astrakhan Region in the southern part of the country announced yesterday that "explicitly religious" clothes and symbols will be banned in the Region's schools and colleges beginning September 1. According to Russia Beyond the Headlines, at a meeting of the regional council for issues of ethnicity and religion Governor Alexander Zhilkin said:

We must not forget that we are a secular state, and we will follow this path, no matter how certain groups try to unravel this system, both for reasons of ethnicity and religion. Those who oppose this idea are free to choose from a plenty of other countries to live in.

The Astrakhan Region is 46% Russian Orthodox and 16% Muslim.

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Approves Sharia-Compliant Chapter 11 Reorganization

As reported by Reuters and Nasdaq, on June 11, a New York federal bankruptcy judge approved what appears to be the first-ever Sharia-compliant Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization. The reorganization plan is for Arcapita Bank PLC, a Bahrain investment firm which offers Sharia-compliant investments to wealthy families, institutions and sovereign wealth funds in the Gulf region. The confirmed plan includes a Sharia-compliant loan and exit financing of up to $525 million that is to be extended to the company by Goldman Sachs. The entire reorganization process complied with Sharia law.  After confirmation of the plan, however, another problem arose. According to Reuters, Central Bank of Bahrain rules require Arcapita to obtain a fatwa from a supervisory board of Islamic law experts before undertaking new financing. Last Monday, Hani Alsohaibi, who had invested money with Arcapita, filed a motion asking the bankruptcy court to reject the debtor in possession loan to Arcapita from Goldman Sachs because only one member of the Sharia supervisory board had signed the fatwa setting the conditions for the loan.

Buddhist Anti-Muslim Extremism Increases In Myanmar

The New York Times yesterday explored the rise of anti-Muslim extremism among Buddhists in Myanmar. The article focuses on Buddhist monk Ashin Wirathu who is described as having "a rock-star following." The Times reports:

What began last year on the fringes of Burmese society has grown into a nationwide movement whose agenda now includes boycotts of Muslim-made goods. Its message is spreading through regular sermons across the country that draw thousands of people and through widely distributed DVDs of those talks. Buddhist monasteries associated with the movement are also opening community centers and a Sunday school program for 60,000 Buddhist children nationwide.

Cert. Petition Filed In Middle School Graduation Speech Case

A petition for certiorari (full text) was filed yesterday with the U.S. Supreme Court in A.M. v. Taconic Hills Central School District. In the case, the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals rejected a free speech claim by a middle school student, the co-president of student council, who was not permitted to include a religious blessing at the end of her remarks at the school's Moving-Up Ceremony. (See prior posting.) ADF issued a press release announcing the filing of the cert. petition.

Suits Challenge Shift of California Parochial Schools' Sports Leagues As Religious Discrimination

As reported by the Los Angeles Daily News and the Ventura County Star, four parochial high schools filed three separate federal lawsuits yesterday against the California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section (CIF-SS) challenging the transfer of their sports teams to the Parochial Area league, with a resulting significant increase in travel time for students to reach the location of "away" games. Here is the full text of the complaint in one of the lawsuits-- Archdiocese of Los Angeles Education and Welfare Corp. v. California Interscholastic Association Southern Section, (CD CA, filed 6/20/2013). Claiming federal and state constitutional free exercise, equal protection and due process violations, the complaint alleges:

a discriminatory scheme to uproot Plaintiff religious schools out of their home geographic areas where they have been competing in athletic sports for decades and require them to travel excessive distances for the sole purpose of segregating them with other religious schools.

Israeli Police Investigate Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi For Fraud As Chief Rabbi Elections Approach

In Israel today, police fraud unit officers raided the home and office of Chief Rabbi Yona Metzger who has been under investigation for fraud, money laundering and accepting bribes. According to YNet News, Metzger (the country's Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi) is suspected of taking for himself hundreds of thousands of shekels he had raised for different NGOs. Metzger was brought in for questioning by police this morning, and a lien was placed on his and his associates' bank accounts. The terms of both the Ashkenazi and Sephardi Chief Rabbis, extended once, now expire on July 24. The Supreme Court has said that elections must be held by then. The contest, particularly for the Ashkenazi position, has become extremely acrimonious. (Jerusalem Post.)

Court Refuses "Sky Funeral" For Veteran; Gives Hospital Control of Body

In Newby v. Serpentfoot, (GA Super. Ct., June 17, 2013), a Georgia state trial court rejected an attempt by a "Ms. Serpentfoot" to claim the body of deceased veteran Leeveneous Dempsey who died while a patient at a hospital in Floyd County, Georgia.  Serpentfoot had a health care power of attorney from Dempsey, who died on April 14. Instead the court granted the petition of the Floyd Medical Center allowing it to direct disposition of Dempsey's body, saying that Serpentfoot planned "morally and legally reprehensible" acts on Dempsey's body.  According to the Rome (GA) News-Tribune, Serpentfoot, who is president of Word Problems and Problem Solvers, Cures — a religious organization based on her "Bad News Gospel"-- claimed to be Dempsey's de facto husband.  She wanted to provide Dempsey a "sky funeral," in which she would "dismember the body, extract and retain the bones for study and 'art' purposes, place the deboned flesh in the open to feed animals and fertilize plants and save a portion of the remains to deposit at sea." Dempsey was buried with military rites on Tuesday.

Suit Alleges Applicant For County Position Was Asked Illegal Questions About Religion, Political Views

The Austin Statesman reports today on a federal lawsuit that was filed this week by Robert Lloyd, an unsuccessful applicant for the position of Constable in Williamson County, Texas.  According to the complaint, the county Commissioners Court asked Lloyd illegal and irrelevant questions:

When defendants interviewed the five final applicants and their references for the constable position, they unabashedly and illegally asked questions about the applicants’ views on abortion, gay marriage, politics and whether they voted conservatively and voted Republican and their religious affiliation. 

Convictions of Faith Healing Parents Upheld

In State of Oregon v. Beagley, (OR App., June 19, 2013), the Oregon Court of Appeals upheld the negligent homicide convictions of Jeffrey and Marci Beagley in the faith-healing death of their 16-year old son.  The Beagley's, members of the Followers of Christ Church that rejects medical care, prayed for their son rather than seeking medical attention for a congenital abnormality that led to kidney failure. (See prior posting.) The appeals court rejected defendants' arguments that the indictment did not state a crime; that the court's jury instructions were erroneous; and that the court erroneously denied their motion to exclude evidence regarding the faith-healing death of their granddaughter. The court held that defendants:

have presented us with no compelling reason now to conclude that parents do not have a legal obligation to provide needed life-sustaining medical care for their children, nor that parents' constitutional right freely to exercise their religion encompasses a right unreasonably to fail to meet that obligation.

County, In Change of Heart, Says Maum Meditation Center Qualifies As A Religious Institution

Under the Lake County, Illinois zoning ordinances, "religious institutions" are permitted to operate in areas zoned for "estates."  Yesterday's Lake Forester reports that the County Department of Planning, Building and Development has finally decided that Maum Meditation is a religion after initially taking the position that Maum Meditation House of Truth could not operate in a home donated to it by one of its followers because it did not meet the "elements of religion." The Department's change of heart comes two weeks after Maum Meditation filed a federal lawsuit seeking to have the court declare that Maum Meditation is a religion. The county says it changed its mind after it received information showing that Maum Meditation is part of an "emerging new religious movement" from the Far East.

Court Upholds Refusal To Allow Church To Run Religious Services In City Homeless Shelters

In Caractor v. City of New York Department of Homeless Services, (SD NY, June  14, 2013), a New York federal district court rejected free speech, free exercise and equal protection challenges by the head of the Discovered Being Ministry to New York's refusal to permit him to conduct Christian religious services inside city homeless shelters. The court concluded that homeless shelters are non-public forums and that "DHS’s decision to limit access to external organizations that either assist in providing shelter, aid shelter residents to find permanent housing, or provide services mandated or authorized by law -- a restriction which consequently excludes religious organizations -- is both reasonable and viewpoint
neutral."

Federal Agencies Issue Guidelines For Houses of Worship In Developing Emergency Plans

The Obama Administration yesterday, at a White House event hosted by Vice President Biden, released  a progress report on executive action taken to reduce gun violence. Among the items highlighted by the White House is a new Guide for Developing High-Quality Emergency Operations Plans for Houses of Worship. The 32-page Guide, developed by six federal agencies, provides information for houses of worship in developing an emergency operations plan to deal with violence, arson and natural disasters. Religion News Service focuses particularly on the Guide's recommendations on dealing with active shooter incidents.

Preliminary Injunction Allows Religious College To Exclude Certain Contraceptives From Student Health Plan, Pending Final Decision

As previously reported, a challenge to the Affordable Care Act contraceptive coverage mandate by religiously-sponsored Geneva College is pending in federal district court in Pennsylvania. Yesterday in Geneva College v. Sebelius, (WD PA, June 18, 2013) (opinion) (order), the court granted Geneva College a preliminary injunction pending a decision on the merits or a decision in a similar case by the 3rd Circuit or U.S. Supreme Court. The injunction allows the College to exclude from coverage in its student health insurance plan abortifacients to which it has religious objections. According to the Pittsburgh Tribune Review, Geneva College, which must choose a health plan by Thursday for the coming school year, would have opted for no insurance coverage for students instead of coverage that violates its religious tenets.

Judge's Religious Comments During Sentencing Are Not Reversible Error

In State of Wisconsin v. Betters, (WI App., June 18, 2013), a Wisconsin state appeals court rejected defendant's claim that a trial court had improperly relied on religious considerations in sentencing him to a longer term than was recommended by the pre-sentence report or requested by the state. In a plea agreement, Robert Betters plead guilty to repeated sexual assault of a child and possession of child pornography  growing out of charges that he had repeated sexual contact with his girl friend's two teenage sons. As described by the appeals court:

During sentencing, the [trial] court remarked that “every child is a gift from God,” and indicated Betters’s conduct toward the boys was “an abomination in the sight of God and in the sight of man, and … totally unacceptable.”

The court of appeals concluded however:

Although the [trial] court used religious language, sparingly, during its analysis, Betters has failed to show that it is highly probable or reasonably certain his sentence was based on the court’s religious convictions. We stress again that the court’s invocations of a religious deity were ill-advised. However, not every “ill-advised word” will create reversible error.

AP reports on the Court of Appeals decision.

Suit Challenges NYPD's Muslim Surveillance Program

A federal lawsuit was filed yesterday challenging the constitutionality of the New York Police Department's surveillance program directed at Muslim religious and community leaders, organizations, businesses and at mosques.  The complaint (full text) in Raza v. City of New York, (ED NY, filed 6/18/2013), asserting free exercise, equal protection and establishment clause violations, summarizes the claims:

Since 2002, the New York City Police Department ("NYPD") has engaged in an unlawful policy and practice of religioius profiling and suspicionless surveillance of Muslim New Yorkers. This policy and practice has a false and unconstitutional premise: that Muslim religious beliefs and practices are a basis for law enforcement scrutiny.

The ACLU issued a press release announcing the filing of the lawsuit. A similar lawsuit was filed last year by different plaintiffs in a New Jersey federal district court.

Obama Sends Senate The Nomination of New Ambassador To Holy See

Yesterday President Obama sent to the United States Senate the nomination of Kenneth Francis Hackett to be U.S. Ambassador to the Vatican. (White House announcement.) As reported last week by Religion News Service, the nomination of Hackett, the former head of Catholic Relief Services, is not likely to be controversial.  The White House gave further information about Hackett last week when it announced its intent to nominate him. The U.S. ambassadorship to the Holy See has been vacant since last November when Miguel Diaz resigned to become University Professor of Faith and Culture at the University of Dayton.

Hearing Officer Says Christian Pregnancy Center Is Eligible In Government Loan Program

In a case on remand from a federal district court (see prior posting), a hearing officer in the Department of Agriculture's National Appeals Division held that the Department of Agriculture was wrong in denying a Christian pregnancy resource center eligibility for a direct loan under the agency's Community Facilities Loan Program.  In In re Care Net Pregnancy Center of Windham County, (Dept. Agr. Natl. App. Div., June 14, 2013), the hearing officer held that the loan denial because of voluntary Bible classes offered by Care Net to its clients violated the Department's rules properly construed:

These Department regulations do not prohibit Agency funding of Appellant’s Program loan since Appellant’s voluntary Bible classes do not impose an additional cost of facility construction or renovation (e.g., do not require the building of a chapel, sanctuary, church, worship center, or other building fixture principally used for inherently religious activities). If Appellant were to make its incidental and voluntary Bible classes mandatory or use coercion, or were to change its operations to become dominated by inherently religious activities and costs were imposed on secular activities, then a different analysis would result.

The hearing officer also held that the loan denial violates the Free Speech, Free Exercise and Equal Protection clauses of the U.S. Constitution, saying in part:

Agency would have found Appellant eligible for the Program loan so long as Appellant keeps religious speech out of the building or segregated to a separate room – a literal religious gerrymander. Adopting Agency’s approach would require any religious discussion, regardless of whether it were to be initiated by Appellant or its clients, to cease and for the participants of that discussion to pause, leave the facility or room, and travel elsewhere to reengage in the discussion. This effect is more than an incidental burden on a particular religious practice or belief: it is significant pressure, which will almost certainly cause clients to end prematurely or avoid any religious discussion altogether. Such a burden would facilitate a “chilling effect” on such discussion....

Alliance Defending Freedom issued a press release announcing the decision.

In Important Decision, New Hampshire Court Invalidates Tax Credit Scholarships To Sectarian Schools

In Duncan v. State of New Hampshire, (NH Super. Ct., June 17, 2013), a New Hampshire trial court judge in a precedent-setting 45-page opinion held that New Hampshire's Education Tax Credit program violates the state constitution's ban on compelling any person to support sectarian schools (Art. 6) and its "No Aid" clause (Art. 83), insofar as the state allows scholarship funds generated by the program to be used at religious schools. The court relied on a newly-enacted statutory amendment broadening taxpayer standing (RSA 491.22 I) to allow all the taxpayer plaintiffs in the suit to maintain the action.  Departing from interpretations of the federal and some other state constitutions, the court also held that even though the state constitution's "No Aid" clause refers to expenditure of "money raised by taxation," it also applies to funds contributed to scholarship organizations for which businesses receive a tax credit.  The court said:

Money that would otherwise be flowing to the government is diverted for the very specific purpose of providing scholarships to students....

[Articles 6 and 83] broadly obstruct, or bar, the provision of, or diversion of, "public funds." or tax monies, to financially aid "the schools of a religious sect or denomination."

The court held, however, that the program of scholarships funded by contributions for which businesses received tax credits may continue so long as scholarships are awarded only for attendance at non-religious schools. The Cato Institute reports at length on the decision. (See prior related posting.)

Christian Church Leaders In Ireland Held In Contempt In Church's Financial Woes

The press in Ireland reports on the financial woes of Victory Christian Fellowship, a church which, according to the Sunday World, took 10% of its followers' income by preaching "the more money you give the more blessings you get." As reported yesterday by The Independent, the church lost its tax exempt status for engaging in excessive commercial activity.  This in turn led the Bank of Scotland to call in unpaid loans of 18 million Euros. When the bank sent in receivers to take possession of the church's three prime properties, they were blocked by church staff and congregation members. Friday's Kildare Nationalist reports that this led the court to hold three trustees of the church in contempt. To avoid jail, the trustees agreed to facilitate a peaceful handover of the church's three Dublin properties to the bank's receivers last Friday afternoon.

Egyptian Courts Continue To Convict for Insulting Religion

Courts in Egypt apparently continue to vigorously enforce Egyptian laws barring contempt of religion, reflecting Article 44 of Egypt's Constitution which provides: "Insult or abuse of all religious messengers and prophets shall be prohibited."

On June 11 in Luxor, the Misdemeanor Court fined a Coptic Christian elementary school teacher EGP 100,000 ($14,000 US) for insulting Islam. According to Egypt Daily News, parents of three students complained that 24-year old Demiana Abdel Nour told students that the late Pope Shenouda III performed more miracles than the Prophet Muhammad, and that the teacher also placed her hand on her stomach to convey nausea when mentioning Muhammad. A number of students though said that no such attacks on religion had taken place.

Meanwhile, on June 16, a Misdemeanor Court in Nasr City convicted conservative Islamic preacher and TV channel owner Abu Islam (Ahmed Abdallah) of tearing up a Christian Bible in a demonstration outside the U.S. embassy last September and for saying on a TV program that 90% of the women protesters in Tahrir Square were Christians who came there "half naked" in order to get sexually harassed. According to Egypt Daily News, he was sentenced to 5 years for tearing the Bible, 3 years for insulting religion, and an additional 3 years for disturbing public peace. He was also fined EGP 3,000 ($425 US). Abu Islam's son was sentenced to 8 years in prison and a fine of EGP 2,000 for participating in the demonstration. The sentences will be suspended pending appeal.

Recent Articles of Interest and Call For Papers

From SSRN:

• Vivian Grosswald Curran, Book Review: Gilles Cuniberti, Grands Systèmes De Droit Contemporains (2d ed., L.G.D.J., 2011), (American Journal of Comparative Law, Vol. 61, p. 721, 2013).
• Lucia Ann Silecchia, On 'Unease' and 'Idealism': Reflections on Pope Benedict XVI's Educating Young People in Justice and Peace and Its Message for Law Teachers, (Notre Dame Journal of Law, Ethics and Public Policy, Vol. 27, No. 2, 2013).
• Elizaeth Sepper, Doctoring Discrimination in the Same-Sex Marriage Debates, (Indiana Law Journal, Forthcoming 2014).
• Alan D. Miller & Ronen Perry, A Group's a Group, No Matter How Small: An Economic Analysis of Defamation, (Washington and Lee Law Review, Vol. 70, 2013).
• Amanda Reid, Private Memorials on Public Space: Roadside Crosses at the Intersection of the Free Speech Clause and the Establishment Clause, (Nebraska Law Review, Vol. 92, p. 501-561, 2013).

From SmartCILP amd elsewhere:

• Deepa Das Acevedo, Secularism in the Indian Context, (38 Law & Social Inquiry 138-167 (2013)).
• Anthony V. Alfieri, Community Education and Access to Justice in a Time of Scarcity: Notes from the West Grove Trolley Garage Case, (2013 Wisconsin Law Review 121-143).
• Brooke Goldstein & Benjamin Ryberg. The Emerging Face of Lawfare: Legal Maneuvering Designed to Hinder the Exposure of Terrorism and Terror Financing, (36 Fordham International Law Journal 634-656 (2013)).
• Abraham M. Lackman, The Collapse of Catholic School Enrollment: The Unintended Consequence of the Charter School Movement, 6 Albany Government Law Review 1-20 (2013).
• Clark B. Lombardi, Constitutional Provisions Making Sharia "A" or "The" Chief Source of Legislation: Where Did They Come From? What Do They Mean? Do They Matter?, [Abstract], (28 American University International Law Review 733-774 (2013)).
• C.M.A. McCauliff, Dreyfus, Laicite and the Burqa, (28 Connecticut Journal of International Law 117-151 (2012)).
• SpearIt, Raza Islamica: Prisons, Hip Hop & Converting Converts, (22 Berkeley La Raza L.J. 175-201 (2012).)
• Seventh Annual John F. Scarpa Conference on Law, Politics, and Culture: Living the Catholic Faith in Public Life. Articles by Abp. Charles J. Chaput, Helen Alvare, Patrick McKinley Brennan and Michael J. White. [Abstract]. 58 Villanova Law Review 371-470 (2013).
• Symposium:  Law, Religion, and Lautsi v. Italy. Maine Law Review, Vol. 65, No. 2 (2013).

Call For Papers:

• Section on Law and Religion Call for Papers for January 2014 AALS Annual Meeting Program: “Cooperating With Evil, Complicity with Sin.”

New York Court Lifts Kirpan Ban After Sikh Groups Resolve Dispute

Sikh Wire reports that on Friday, a New York state trial court judge lifted the ban he had imposed in May 2010 on the carrying ban of the kirpan, the ceremonial dagger, inside the Gurdwara in Rochester (NY). The ban was originally imposed because of a dispute between two Sikh groups. Later the ban was liberalized so that clergy could carry kirpans. According to Sikh Wire:

After protests by Sikhs in the US and elsewhere against the ban on their religious right to wear the kirpan, the Akal Takht – the supreme spiritual institution of the Sikhs in Amritsar – appointed a seven-member committee in the US to get the kirpan ban removed, and help the two warring parties at the gurdwara resolve differences.

Recent Prisoner Free Exercise Cases

In Mansfield v. Missouri Department of Corrections, (8th Cir., June 10, 2013), the 8th Circuit held that prison official's compelling interest in security justified their denial of group worship services for members of the Christian Separatist Church Society.

In Small v. Wetzel, (3d Cir., June 11, 2013), the 3rd Circuit upheld a district court's dismissal of Muslim inmates' complaints about a strip search with female prison staff present and one inmate's complaint about the requirement to sign Guidelines in order to participate in the Ramadan fasting program. However the court did permit plaintiff to proceed  with an equal protection claim for nominal damages based on the prison not requiring Jewish prisoners to sign similar Guidelines to participate in their holy day observances.

In Laurensau v. Romarowics, (3rd Cir., June 13, 2013), the 3rd Circuit upheld removal of an inmate from the kosher diet program because he failed to show a sincerely held religious belief.

In Bucano v. Sibum, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 79514 (MD PA, June 6, 2013), a Pennsylvania federal district court agreed with a federal magistrate judge's recommendation (2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 188330, Dec. 27, 2012) to dismiss without prejudice the claim by two inmates that being forced to eatnon-Kosher  food, being prohibited from being in the same cell, and being called "fake Jews" by a corrections officer violated their free exercise rights.

In Smith v. Owens, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 81198 (SD GA, June 10, 2013), a Georgia federal district court adopted a magistrate's recommendation (2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 81416, May 9, 2013) and dismissed a complaint by a Hindu inmate who sought a vegan diet that he is unable to participate in the alternative entree meal plan.

In Chesser v. Rivas, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 82223 (SD IL, June 11, 2013), an Illinois federal district court allowed a Muslim inmate at a special federal high security unit to move ahead with religious freedom and other challenges to the ban on Arabic, the ban on shortened pants, imposing participation in receiving special food on non-Muslim holidays, denial of Halal meals for Islamic holidays, failure to provide an imam, and failure to provide food for breaking of religious fasts.

In Ericson v. Magnusson, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 82347 (D ME, June 12, 2013), a Maine federal district court dismissed for failure to exhaust administrative remedies a Protestant inmate's complaint that inmates in protective custody may not attend group religious services outside the unit. as well as complaints about other limitations on practicing his religion.

In United States v. Bowman, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 82652 (WD NC, June 12, 2013), a North Carolina federal district court granted an inmate's motion that both the court and the Bureau of Prisons recognize his newly adopted Islamic name, but only along with the name under which he was committed.

In Allen v. Virga, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 82825 (ED CA, June 11, 2013) a California federal magistrate judge permitted an inmate who is an adherent of the House of Yahweh Yahdaim who sought kosher meals which he had been denied because he is not Jewish to proceed on his claim for damages. Plaintiff was also granted leave to file an amended complaint setting out a RLUIPA claim.

In United States v. Zielinski, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 81510 (ND NY, June 11, 2013), a New York federal district court adopted a magistrate's recommendation (2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 82014, May 15, 2013) and revoked defendant's supervised release program because of his failure to participate in parts of it. The court concluded that the sex offender program did not burden a religious exercise, finding that "Objectivism" is not a religion.

In Maxwell v. Clarke, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 83461 (WD VA, June 13, 2013), a Virginia federal district court dismissed claims by a Rastafarian inmate that his rights under the 1st and 14th Amendments and RLUIPA were infringed when he was confined to segregation without permission to attend religious services for refusing to cut his hair as required by the prison's grooming policy.

In Quinn v. Knab, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 82542 (SD OH, June 12, 2013), an Ohio federal district court dismissed an inmate's religious accommodation claim, finding that the claim for injunctive relief is moot since he was released from prison. It also held he cannot recover damages under RLUIPA from state employees in their personal capacities.

Judge Jones Misconduct Complaint Transferred To DC Circuit

As previously reported, on June 4 a misconduct complaint was filed against Judge Edith Jones, based in part on comments she made regarding a religious justification for capital punishment. Now, as reported yesterday by the New Orleans Advance, it appears that the complaint has been transferred from the Judicial Council of the 5th Circuit to the Judicial Council of the D.C. Circuit. On June 12, a Notice was posted on the U.S. 5th circuit Court of Appeals website indicating that a judicial conduct proceeding had been transferred. The Notice linked to a June 12 letter from U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts authorizing the transfer, and indicating that he had received a request on June 7 from the 5th Circuit for the transfer. The Judicial Conference Rules (full text) set out the basis for transfers.

UPDATE: On Thursday, Alliance for Justice submitted a letter (full text) in support of the misconduct complaint to the chief judge of the D.C. Circuit. It says that there is a long pattern of prejudicial statements and actions by Judge Jones, including her repeatedly speaking of the primacy of religion above law.

Jewish Prisoner Wants Permission To Be Circumcised

Prison authorities in Florida are facing an unusual religious accommodation question.  WEAR News yesterday reported that inmate Pablo Diaz, whose mother was Jewish and who has been active in the Jewish prison ministry at Blackwater River Correctional Facility, is requesting to be allowed to be circumcised. He directed his request to the state corrections department after similar previous request was turned down by the warden. The 37-year old Diaz is serving a life sentence for kidnapping, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and manslaughter. The non-profit group Brit Yosef Yitzchak has offered to perform the religious circumcision free of charge.

Suit Claims Discriminatory Treatment In Censorship of Atheist Materials Handed Out In Schools

As previously reported, last month the Central Florida Freethought Community made materials on Atheism available to students in eleven Orange County, Florida high schools.  This was permitted in order to allow them the same privilege as was given to World Changers of Florida which handed out Bibles in the schools in February. Now, however, the free thought group's parent body (FFRF) has filed a lawsuit claiming that their literature faced censorship while World Changers did not.  The complaint (full text) in Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc. v. Orange County School Board, (MD FL, filed 6/13/2013), charges that school officials allowed FFRF to distribute only 11 of 20 of the books and pamphlets it submitted. The others were prohibited as age inappropriate or because they would create substantial disruption.  In particular one publication was disallowed because its claim that Jesus was not crucified or resurrected made it age inappropriate, even though the Bibles distributed expresses an opposite viewpoint on the same issue. The suit claims unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination, prior restraint and violation of the equal protection clause. Freedom From Religion Foundation issued a press release announcing the filing of the lawsuit.

House Hearing Is Critical of US Implementation of International Religious Freedom Act

Yesterday, the Subcommittee on National Security of the U.S. House Oversight & Government Reform Committee held a hearing titled "Examining the Government’s Record on Implementing the International Religious Freedom Act." A video of the hearing and transcripts of all the witnesses' prepared statements are available on the Committee's website.  The hearing began with a kerfuffle over the State Department's refusal to make Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Suzan Johnson Cook available to testify because of the Committee's insistence that all witnesses testify on a single panel.  State Department policy does not permit executive branch officials to testify on panels with non-government witnesses.  Four witnesses did testify-- USCIRF Chair Katrina Lantos Swett; director of Georgetown's Religious Freedom Project, Thomas F. Farr; Chris Seiple, President of Institute for Global Engagement; and Amjad Mahmood Khan, National Director of Public Affairs of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA.

In her testimony, USCIRF Chair Swett said in part:

Unfortunately, neither Republican nor Democratic Administrations have fully utilized IRFA as the key foreign policy tool it was intended to be. Neither have designated CPCs in a timely manner nor issued specific Presidential actions based on these designations.

Mr. Farr in his testimony also criticized U.S. action:

Notwithstanding the hard, creative work of the State Department’s Office of International Religious Freedom, it would be difficult to name a single country in the world over the past fifteen years where American religious freedom policy has helped to reduce religious persecution or to increase religious freedom in any substantial or sustained way.

French Appeals Court Upholds Order Requiring Twitter To Disclose Names of Anti-Semitic Tweeters

According to CNet News and JTA, in France yesterday the Paris Court of Appeal upheld a lower court order requiring Twitter to turn over to the Union of Jewish French Students (UEJF) and four human rights groups that brought suit the names of individuals who last October posted Tweets using anti-Semitic hashtags. The hashtags were used in a kind of competition of anti-Semitic jokes. Twitter, which has already removed the Tweets, argued that as an American company, it should be protected by the First Amendment. The full text of Wednesday's opinion in Association L'Union des Etudiants Juifs de France (UEJF) v. Societe Twitter Inc., (Paris Ct. App., June 12, 2013) is available online in French.

Southern Baptists Adopt Resolution On Boy Scouts; Public Policy Spokesman Talks With Reporters

During its annual meeting yesterday, the Southern Baptist Convention adopted a lengthy resolution expressing the denomination's "continued opposition to and disappointment in the decision of the Boy Scouts of America to change its membership policy" to allow gays to become members of the Scouts.  (See prior posting.)  The resolution expressed concern that this may be the first step toward approving homosexual scout leaders. The resolution went on to:

affirm the right of all families and churches prayerfully to assess their continued relationship with the BSA, expressing our support for those churches and families that as a matter of conscience can no longer be part of the Scouting family....

we encourage churches and families that remain in the Boy Scouts to seek to impact as many boys as possible with the life-changing Gospel of Jesus Christ, to work toward the reversal of this new membership policy.... 

we declare our love in Christ for all young people regardless of their perceived sexual orientation, praying that God will bring all youth into a saving knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The resolution encourages churches that sever ties with the Scouts to expand their Royal Ambassador ministry program for boys. Baptist Press has a report along with the full text of the resolution.

At the meeting, Russell Moore, newly elected president of the Convention's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission held his first press conference. (BP report.) He told reporters that religious liberty has become the most significant issue in American culture. Focusing on engagement with the broader society, he said that "expressions of outrage, boycotts consistently against everyone who doesn't conform to our sense of values [are] not an effective way to engage culture." On politics, he said: "[T]he church of Jesus Christ is not owned by any political party and shouldn't be co-opted by any political party."

Judge Refuses To Dismiss Faith Healing Parents Murder Case

According to Reuters, a Philadelphia Municipal Court judge yesterday ruled that the murder and involuntary manslaughter case against Herbert and Catherine Schaible should proceed to trial.  The couple, charged in the faith-healing death of their 7-month old child, had sought to have the charges dismissed on the ground that they did not know their child was sick enough to die, and thus there was no gross negligence or malice. The couple had previously been convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the faith healing death of another of their children. (See prior related posting.)

Plaintiffs Lack Standing To Challenge Arizona Day of Prayer Proclamations

In Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc. v. Brewer, (AZ App., June 11, 2013), an Arizona state Court of Appeals held that a group of Maricopa County residents and a organization promoting church-state separation lack standing to to challenge Governor Janice Brewer's Day of Prayer proclamations. Plaintiffs alleged that the proclamations violated Article 2, Section 12  (Religion Clause) and Article 20, Par. 1 (perfect toleration of religion clause) of the Arizona Constitution.  The court, finding no distinct harm to plaintiffs, said:

Appellants have offered no explanation why their feeling of offense is any greater than that of a large segment of the general public nor how such purported psychological harm amounted to a discrete and palpable injury. Accordingly, we conclude they lack standing to bring their complaint. 

The court also found that plaintiffs had not alleged taxpayer standing, and that the standing requirements should not be waived. AP reports on the decision. (See prior related posting.)

10th Circuit: Native American Legend On License Plate Supports Pastor's Compelled Speech Claim

In Cressman v. Thompson, (10th Cir., June 11, 2013), the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals held that plaintiff states a plausible First Amendment "compelled speech" claim in objecting to what he views as a religious depiction on Oklahoma's 2009 license plates. The plates include a depiction of a sculpture titled "Sacred Rain Arrow" showing a Native American shooting an arrow toward the sky. The sculpture is based on a Native American legend in which a medicine man blesses a warrior's bow and arrows during a time of drought. Plaintiff Kieth Cressman, a United Methodist pastor, says that the belief in sacred objects, multiple gods and the ability of humans to use sacred objects to convince gods to alter nature represented by the legend all contradict his Christian religious beliefs. He does not want to display those beliefs on his automobile.  The court refused to dismiss the claim, saying that further factual development is necessary to determine whether others would perceive the license plate as conveying the message that Cressman alleges it does. The Oklahoman reports on the decision.

UPDATE: On June 12, the 10th Circuit announced that a clerical error had led to the June 11 decision failing to include a dissent by Judge Kelly.  The court reissued the decision, including the dissent.

Israeli Knesset Passes Law Requiring 4 Women On Rabbinical Judges Selection Committee

In Israel, government-appointed judges of rabbinical courts have jurisdiction over issues of Jewish marriage and divorce in the country.  The rabbinical court judges are chosen by the Selection Committee for Rabbinical Judges.  The Jerusalem Post and New York Jewish Week report that Israel's Knesset yesterday, over strong objections by haredi (ultra-Orthodox) parties, passed a law increasing the size of the selection committee from 10 to 11, and requiring that 4 of 11 places on the committee be reserved for women.  Women's advocacy groups hope this will lead to the appointment of judges who are more attuned to women's concerns, particularly in divorce cases. Under past law, the selection committee was made up of Israel's two chief rabbis, two judges from the Rabbinic Court of Appeals, two government ministers, and two lawyers representing the Israel Bar Association. Under the new law, which will take effect only after the next Knesset elections, one of the representatives from the government, one from the Knesset and one from the bar association will be women. Also the Minister of Justice will appoint a fourth woman who must be a rabbinical courts advocate.

South Carolina Episcopal Diocese Property Dispute Sent Back To State Court

In Protestant Episcopal Church In The Diocese Of South Carolina v. The Episcopal Church, (D SC, June 10, 2013), a South Carolina federal district court remanded to the state court a lawsuit over church property that had been removed to federal court.  In the case, the break-away Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina originally filed suit in state court against The Episcopal Church to establish the break-away Diocese's right to the real and personal property of the Diocese and its parishes. (See prior posting.) The Episcopal Church through its state affiliate, removed the case to federal court claiming that the case raises federal questions under the 1st Amendment and the Lanham Act. The court, however, emphasized that plaintiffs' complaint raised only claims based on South Carolina statutes. For removal, a federal issue must be an essential element in plaintiff's case, raised on the face of its complaint. Any 1st Amendment issue in this case is essentially a defense. Anglican Curmudgeon and Episcopal Church in South Carolina discuss the decision from opposite perspectives.

Muslims May Proceed With Equal Protection Challenge To Discriminatory Religious Interrogation At US-Canadian Border

In Cherri v. Mueller, (ED MI, June 11, 2013), a Michigan federal district court permitted four Muslim-Americans to proceed with their suit against federal officials. The suit charges that when Muslims re-enter the United States from Canada, they are extensively questioned about Islamic religious philosophy and views, practices, and locations where they worship. According to the court:

This case presents an issue of first impression.... In short, the question before the Court is whether the Government has unfettered discretion to question at the border a specific class of individuals about their religious practices and beliefs after being profiled and detained solely because of those religious practices and beliefs.

After finding that plaintiffs have standing to challenge the government practice, federal district judge Avern Cohn dismissed their free exercise, RFRA, Establishment Clause and retaliation claims.  However he found that plaintiffs had adequately stated a claim under the equal protection component of the 5th Amendment:

Plaintiffs have adequately pled that Defendants have a policy, custom and practice of questioning only Muslim American’s at the border about their religious practices and beliefs. Moreover, Plaintiffs have sufficiently alleged that such policy, practice and custom targets a suspect class and has no rational basis. At this stage in the case, Plaintiffs’allegations are sufficient. The Fifth Amendment claim, therefore, will not be dismissed.

The Detroit Free Press reports on the decision. (See prior related posting.)

Russian Duma Passes Laws Banning Insulting of Religious Feelings and Disseminating Homosexual Propaganda To Minors

Yesterday in Russia, the Duma-- the lower house of Russia's Parliament-- passed two bill of interest. The first is a ban on publicly insulting religious feelings. As reported by RT, the Duma passed amendments to Article 148 of the Criminal Code (full text of bill in Russian) that would punish offenses by up to three years in prison and a fine of 500,000 rubles ($15,600 US).  The bill also imposes up to one year in prison and disqualification for certain public offices for two years for anyone convicted of obstructing the activities of religious organizations. Premeditated and public desecration of religious objects or books will be punishable by fines of up to 200,000 rubles ($6,200 US). The bill is strongly backed by the Russian Orthodox Church, particularly after the widely publicized punk-band Pussy Riot demonstration in Moscow's main cathedral last February. (See prior posting.)  Here is the legislative history page from the Duma (in Russian). To become law, the bill must still be approved by the Federation Council, the Upper House of the Russian parliament, and signed by President Putin.

The Duma yesterday also passed by an overwhelming vote a bill that would outlaw homosexual propaganda aimed at individuals under 18 years of age. (Legislative history page in Russian.) The bill primarily embodies amendments to the Law On Protection of Children From Information Harmful To Their Health and Development (full text of bill in Russian).  According tp Russia Beyond the Headlines the bill describes its purpose as combating "the dissemination of information that aims to induce minors to develop non-traditional sexual attitudes, to see non-traditional sexual relationships as attractive, to develop the distorted notion that traditional and non-traditional sexual relationships possess the same value, or the dissemination of information on non-traditional sexual relationships that arouses interest in such relationships."

Fines for violations of the bill's prohibitions vary depending on whether the violator is a private individual, an official, or an entity. Fines are higher if the prohibited information is disseminated through the media or on the Internet. Foreign nationals who violate the law also face arrest of up to 15 days and expulsion from the country. This bill must also still be approved by the Federation Council and signed by President Putin before it finally becomes law.

No Religious Discrimination In Disciplining Employee For Preaching At Lesbian Co-Worker

In Hall v. Tift County Hospital Authority, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 80913 (MD GA, June 10, 2013), a Georgia federal district court dismissed religious discrimination claims brought by a Baptist nursing supervisor against a hospital that disciplined her for giving a lesbian nurse she sometimes supervised a pamphlet and sending her an e-mail emphasizing the sinfulness of homosexuality.  The court rejected plaintiff's claim that the disciplinary action against her violated Title VII, the equal protection clause, and her 1st Amendment free speech and free exercise rights.

Pennsylvania House Honors Landmark SCOTUS Decision By Declaring Public School Religious Freedom Month

According to AP, the Pennsylvania state House of Representatives yesterday unanimously passed House Resolution 351 declaring June 2013 as "Public School Religious Freedom Month."  June 17 is the 50th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark decision in School District of Abington Township, Pennsylvania v. Schempp, striking down Pennsylvania's opening of the public school day with Bible reading and recitation of the Lord's Prayer. The House Resolution praises the Supreme Court's vindication of the rights of conscience.

Misconduct Charges Against 5th Circuit Judge Include Her Religious Justifications For Capital Punishment

As reported by the Austin Chronicle and Courthouse News Service, six civil rights groups and seven individuals, most with special expertise in legal ethics, last week filed judicial misconduct charges against U.S. 5th Circuit Judge Edith Jones primarily over comments she made in a lecture titled "Federal Death Penalty Review."  The talk was given at the University of Pennsylvania Law School on February 20.  The Complaint (full text) alleges that Judge Jones' conduct was "prejudicial to the effective and expeditious administration of the business of the courts, undermines public confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary, and creates a strong appearance of impropriety."

The Complaint filed with the 5th Circuit pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 351(a) focuses on a variety of Jones' remarks-- many uncomplimentary to racial and ethnic minorities and dismissive of defenses raised in capital cases.  In addition, the Complaint alleges that Judge Jones, focusing on the Biblical origins of the death penalty, argued that:

The United States system of justice provides a positive service to capital-case defendants by imposing a death sentence, because the defendants are likely to make peace with God only in the moment before imminent execution.

Supreme Court Denies Review In Challenge To Ban On Pro-Life Picketers' "Gruesome Images"

The U.S. Supreme Court today denied certiorari in Scott v. Saint John’s Church in the Wilderness, (Docket No. 12-1077, cert. denied 6/10/2013). (Order List.) In the case, a Colorado appeals court enjoined anti-abortion protesters who were picketing a church they believed had gone astray from displaying gruesome images of mutilated fetuses or dead bodies in a manner reasonably likely to be viewed by children. (See prior posting.) The case has received a good deal of attention in the blogosphere, particularly through postings by Eugene Volokh who represented petitioners.

Organization of American States Adopts Two Human Rights Conventions; U.S. Has Objections

Merco Press reports that the General Assembly of the Organization of American States meeting last week in Guatemala adopted two human rights conventions-- the Inter-American Convention against Racism, Racial Discrimination, and Related Forms of Intolerance and the Inter-American Convention against All Forms of Discrimination and Intolerance. According to JTA, at a ceremony on Saturday, six countries signed the new conventions-- Argentina, Antigua and Barbuda, Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador and Uruguay.

The new Convention Against All Forms of Discrimination and Intolerance contains a broad definition of prohibited discrimination (Art. 1):

Discrimination may be based on nationality; age; sex; sexual orientation; gender identity and expression; language; religion; cultural identity; political opinions or opinions of any kind; social origin; socioeconomic status; educational level; migrant, refugee, repatriate, stateless or internally displaced status; disability; genetic trait; mental or physical health condition, including infectious-contagious condition and debilitating psychological condition; or any other condition.

The introductory language of the Convention proclaims that parties to it are "disturbed by ... a general increase in cases of intolerance and violence motivated by anti-Semitism, Christianophobia, or Islamophobia, and that directed against members of other religious communities, including those with African roots."  It goes on to recognize "that peaceful coexistence among religions in pluralistic societies and democratic states is based on respect for equality and nondiscrimination among religions and on a clear separation between the laws of the state and religious tenets."

Under Art. 4, states agree to  prevent and prohibit "publication, circulation or dissemination, by any form and/or means of communication, including the Internet, of any materials that advocate, promote, or incite hatred, discrimination, and intolerance."

Footnotes to both Conventions (which continue at the end of the respective documents) indicate that the United States has reservations. The U.S.states in part:

The United States believes that what is needed in this area are enhanced measures and efforts to implement existing human rights instruments, not the adoption of new instruments.  Additionally, we are concerned that some provisions of the draft conventions could undermine or are incompatible with international human rights law protections including those related to freedoms of expression and association.

At the Guatemala meetings, officers of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights were also elected. (OAS press release). Winning candidates were Jose de Jesús Orozco (Mexico) who was reelected, Stanford Law Professor James L. Cavallaro (United States) and Paulo De Tarso Vannuchi (Brazil). Here is the U.S. State Department's press release on the OAS meetings.

Recent Articles of Interest

From SSRN:

• Daniel Golebiewski, Because the Bible Says So: The Impact of Roman Catholic Doctrines on LGBT Rights, (May 1, 2013).
• Pasquale Annicchino, The Conflict between the Autonomy of Religious Groups and Other Fundamental Rights: Recent Decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court and of the European Court of Human Rights, (Quaderni di Diritto e Politica Ecclesiastica 1, 2013).
• Peter G. Danchin, The Politics of Religious Establishment: Recognition of Muslim Marriages in South Africa, (in "Varieties of Religious Establishment" ed. Winnifred Fallers Sullivan and Lori G. Beaman (Farnham, Ashgate, 2013)).
• Alina Ng, Finding Copyright's Core Content, (University of St. Thomas Law Journal, Forthcoming).
• Michael J. Perry, The Morality of Human Rights, (June 4, 2013).
• Hdeel Abdelhady, Islamic Finance as a Mechanism for Bolstering Food Security in the Middle East: Food Security WAQF, (Sustainable Development Law & Policy 13, no. 1 (2012): 29-35, 63-65).
• Roger Colinvaux, Charitable Contributions of Property: A Broken System Reimagined, (Harvard Journal on Legislation, Vol. 50, No. 263, 2013).

From SmartCILP:

• Maarsha B. Freeman, What's Religion Got To Do With It? Virtually Nothing: Hosanna-Tabor and the Unbridled Power of the Ministerial Exemption, [Abstract], 16 University of Pennsylvania Journal of Law & Social Change 133-149 (2013).
• Richard W. Garnett, The Story of Kedroff v. St. Nicholas Cathedral [Includes photographs], [Abstract], 38 Journal of Supreme Court History 80-93 (2013). 
• Douglas Laycock, Edward Schempp and His Family [Includes photographs], [Abstract], 38 Journal of Supreme Court History 63-79 (2013).
• Raymond C. O'Brien, Family Law's Challenge to Religious Liberty, 35 University of Arkansas Little Rock Law Review 3-88 (2012).
• Fatahillah Abdul Syukur & Dale Margaret Bagshaw. When Home Is No Longer "Sweet": Family Violence and Sharia Court-Annexed Mediation in Indonesia, 30 Conflict Resolution Quarterly 271-294 (2013).

In Israel, Women of the Wall Pray Without Interference Under Police Protection

Haaretz reports that this morning in Israel police enforced a Jerusalem district court order allowing "Women of the Wall" to pray in the main section of the Western Wall wearing prayer shawls and tefillin (phylacteries).  In the past, police enforced rules created by Orthodox Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, the rabbi of the Western Wall, which barred women from wearing religious garb that in more traditional circles is worn only by men. (See prior posting.) But today the women prayed without interference.  The tens of thousands of Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) demonstrators who were supposed to show up to protest never materialized.  Only 200 unorganized demonstrators were present. Today's events lessen the pressure to implement a compromise plan developed by Jewish Agency Chairman Natan Sharansky to build a new third area at the Wall for egalitarian prayer.

British Soccer Team Faces Opposition From Player Over Wearing Shirt Advertising Payday Loan Sponsor

According to yesterday's Daily Mail, in Britain the Newcastle United soccer club is facing opposition from one of its star players over wearing a shirt displaying the name of the club's new sponsor, Wonga.com.  Senegalese football striker Papiss Cissé, who signed with the Newcastle Club for some £8 million, says it offends his Muslim beliefs to wear shirts advertising the payday loan company that entered a lucrative 4-year deal with Newcastle.  Sharia law prohibits Muslims from benefiting through lending money to others.  Wonga charges over 4000% interest on its short-term loans. Newcastle's options are allowing Cisse to wear an unbranded shirt during games, or selling Cisse to another team.

No Free Exercise Problem With Evidence of Defendant's Santa Muerte Necklace

In Batiste v. State of Texas, (TX Ct. Crim App., June 5, 2013), defendant who was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death objected, among other things, to the introduction at the penalty phase of his trial of a Santa Muerte necklace he was wearing when arrested. Apparently drug traffickers pray to Santa Muerte to ward off the police when making a drug run. The court held that appellant had failed to object on any 1st Amendment religious ground to introduction of the evidence. It added in a lengthy footnote, however:

Even if appellant had objected on a First Amendment basis, claiming that the admission of the necklace infringed upon his right to his free exercise of religion, the trial judge would not have abused his discretion in overruling that objection. At no time did the prosecutor or the gang expert suggest that appellant's necklace had any significance to the exercise of a bona fide religion. Its established relevance in criminal trials is to criminal street gangs and their "worship" of "Santa Muerte" or "Saint Death" who has been described as "the drug trafficker's god" and is "used as a protector of drug traffickers.... "

Recent Prisoner Free Exercise Cases

In Ali v. Reilly, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 77549 (D NH, June 3, 2013), a New Hampshire federal magistrate judge recommended allowing a Muslim inmate to move ahead with a number of his claims alleging denial of access to Jum'ah services, denial of nutritious food during Ramadan and removal from the Ramadan list.

In Wood v. Michigan Department of Corrections, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 79310  (WD MI, June 6, 2013), a Michigan federal district court, while dismissing a number of plaintiff's claims, permitted a Muslim inmate to proceed on other of his claims against the Department of Corrections and the special activities coordinator seeking a halal diet, bagged meals during Muslim fast days, and the ability to possess religious property.

In Rodriguez v. Mims, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 79980 (ED CA, June 6, 2013), a California federal magistrate judge recommended that a Muslim inmate be permitted to proceed on his complaint against one defendant alleging that the jail in which he was previously held refused to provide him with a kosher diet.

In King v. Bosenko, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 80075 (ED CA, June 6, 2013), a California federal magistrate judge denied an inmate summary judgement, holding that his mere assertion that as a Buddhist he requires a vegetarian diet is not enough to establish as a matter of law that his beliefs are sincere and that vegetarianism is a tenet of his religion.

In Maloney v. Ryan, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 80410 (D AZ, June 6, 2013), an Arizona federal district court permitted a Muslim inmate to proceed on several related complaints about the prison's breakfast policy during Ramadan.

Canadian Terrorist Defendant Insists On Lawyer That Will Help Him Be Judged By the Qur'an

Today's Toronto Star reports on the difficulties faced by a Canadian justice of the peace in attempting to find a lawyer to defend accused terrorist Chiheb Esseghaier.  The defendant, a Tunisian national, is accused of taking part in a plot to derail a Toronto-bound passenger train.  Esseghaier insists that he will only accept a lawyer who will help him be judged by the Qur'an, rather than by the Canadian Criminal Code which he considers "a book written by humans." Recently a legal aid lawyer refused to take the case because of this demand.

County Commission Prayer Challenge Survives Legislative Immunity Defense

In Doe v. Franklin County, Missouri, (ED MO, June 7, 2013), plaintiff, who attended County Commission meetings, sued the county and Presiding Commissioner John Griesheimer who often opened Commission meetings with a Christian prayer, instead of with the scheduled moment of silence. The court fund that plaintiff has standing.  It then refused to dismiss the suit against Griesheimer on the basis of legislative immunity, finding that the content of the prayers involved did not relate to deliberating or passing any law-- a prerequisite for legislative immunity. The court held in abeyance defendants' motion to dismiss the suit as a political question until the U.S. Supreme Court decides a legislative prayer case on its docket for next term. (See prior posting.)

This Weekend Is Pulpit Freedom Sunday-- With Slightly Different Emphasis

This Sunday is Alliance Defending Freedom's 6th Annual Pulpit Freedom Sunday. According to an ADF press release,  almost 1,100 pastors in all 50 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands have registered to participate. Participants this year have agreed to preach sermons that present the biblical perspective on marriage as the union of one man and one woman.  The focus of this year's event is slightly different than in the past, lacking the previous years' avowed defiance of Internal Revenue Code restrictions on non-profits. (See prior posting.) ADF explains:

Since 2008, one of Pulpit Freedom Sunday’s aims has been to have the IRS rule known as the Johnson Amendment struck down as unconstitutional for its regulation of sermons, which are protected by the First Amendment. The primary focus, however, has been on encouraging pastors to exercise their First Amendment freedom to speak truth into every area of life from the pulpit.

Pro-Lifers Challenge Ordinance Barring Noise Around Health Care Facilities

A federal lawsuit was filed yesterday against the city of West Palm Beach, Florida by two anti-abortion activists challenging the city ordinance that prohibits shouting and all amplified sound within 100 feet of the property line of a property housing a health care facility.  The complaint (full text) in Pine v. City of West Palm Beach, Florida, (SD FL, filed 6/6/2013), alleges that plaintiffs, one of whom is the founder of a pro-life ministry, have for many years carried sings and used sound amplification devices at a West Palm Beach women's center that performs abortions. The suit alleges that the ordinance is an overbroad regulation of speech; that selective enforcement of it amounts to a viewpoint-based restriction; and that the ordinance and the application of it "substantially burden Plaintiffs' free exercise of their religious beliefs by prohibiting Plaintiffs from fulfilling their Biblical mandate to promulgate the Gospel of Jesus Christ and evangelize others." Liberty counsel issued a press release announcing the filing of the lawsuit.

Bangladesh Court Fines Muslim Clergy For Election Campaigning

According to bdnews24, in Bangladesh a "mobile court" has fined an imam and a moazzin (Muslim preacher) 10,000 Tk (equivalent of $128 US) for campaigning for a candidate in the upcoming Gazipur City Corporation elections. The judge involved told the press: "We got information that the duo had been campaigning for BNP-backed candidate Professor MA Mannan after Thursday’s Magrib prayers. We went to the spot and caught them in the act. They have been fined for breach of code of conducts."

Christian Employee Who Objects To Secular Counseling Loses Religious Accommodation Claim

In Valenzisi v. Stamford Board of Education, (D CT, June 5, 2013), a Connecticut federal district court dismissed a claim by high school math teacher challenging his termination on, among other grounds, Title VII and 1st Amendment claims of failure to accommodate his religious beliefs. Teacher Frank Valenzisi was required to obtain a "fit for duty" medical evaluation before he could resume teaching after claims of aggressive behavior, difficulty recognizing people and bizarre behavior in a meeting with the deputy superintendent.  Valenzisi objected to the requirement, and sued claiming that as a born-again bible-believing Christian he objected to secular counseling. The court held that there is a question of whether the fitness-for-duty evaluation involved secular counseling, but even if it did Valenzisi did not show that he had requested an accommodation from his employer.

High School Valedictorian Insists on Delivering Prayer

Christian Post reports on the June 3 graduation at Liberty High School in Pickens County, South Carolina.  Valedictorian Roy Costner IV tore up his pre-approved speech and instead, to the applause of many in attendance, recited the Lord's Prayer in full. YouTube has his speech.

FBI To Expand Religious Groups Covered By Hate Crime Reports

According to the Huffington Post, the FBI Advisory Policy Board yesterday approved a pending proposal to amend the standard hare crime incident reporting form so that police departments around the country track hate crimes against Sikhs, Hindus and Arabs. (See prior posting.) Currently the form tracks hate crimes motivated by religious animus against Jews, Catholics, Protestants, Muslims and atheists/agnostics. Subsequently yesterday an FBI spokesman announced that the FBI will go even further and will track hate crimes against "all self-identified religions in the United States as listed in the Pew Research Center’s Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life (2008) and the Statistical Abstract (2012) approved by the U.S. Census Bureau." That list includes: Catholic, Protestant, Mormon, Jehovah's Witness, Orthodox, Other Christian, Jewish, Islamic (Muslim), Buddhist, Hindu, Sikh, Other Religions, Multiple Religions-Group, and Atheism/Agnosticism. All of these changes must still be approved by FBI Director Robert Mueller.

Quebec Soccer Federation Bans Sikh Turbans; Federal Officials Criticize Move

In Canada, the Quebec Soccer Federation has created controversy by deciding last week end to uphold its ban on Sikh boys wearing turbans on the soccer fields.  The Montreal Gazette reported Tuesday:

Quebec referees began cracking down in the last year on turbans, patkas and keskis, the religious headgear worn by Sikh men and boys.

The weekend decision to uphold the ban occurred despite a directive from the Canadian Soccer Association in April, calling for provincial associations to allow them by extending an existing rule that allows Islamic hijabs for girls.

Quebec is the only province that has balked at the directive.

The Soccer Federation sent a memo (full text in French) to referees on Tuesday telling them that they are required to enforce the ban.  The Province reported yesterday that Canadian federal officials are strongly criticizing the turban ban.

UPDATE: RNS reports:

The Quebec Soccer Federation lifted the ban Saturday (June 15), a day after the Canadian Soccer Association sent out word that FIFA, the international governing body, approved the headgear. But allegations of religious intolerance and racism still linger.

UK Parliamentary Committee Report Urges Changes In Charities Act Definition of Religious Charity

In Britain yesterday, the House of Commons Public Administration Select Committee published a report titled The role of the Charity Commission and “public benefit”: Post-legislative scrutiny of the Charities Act 2006.  Britain's 2006 Charity Act requires that to qualify as a charity, an organization must not only be created to advance one of a set of specified purposes, such as "advancement of religion," but must also be "for the public benefit."  The Report says in part:

The Charity Commission... argued that there was a “lack of certainty as to the law relating to the public benefit requirement for the advancement of religion” since the passing of the Charities Act 2006. This lack of certainty, and the Commission’s interpretation of the Act, have led to the questioning of the charitable status of independent schools and the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church (or Exclusive Brethren) and concerns over the wider impact on faith charities.... 

We recommend that the removal of the presumption of public benefit in the 2006 Charities Act be repealed, along with the Charity Commission’s statutory public benefit objective. This would ensure that no transient Government could introduce what amounts to substantive changes in charity law without Parliament’s explicit consent. If the Government wishes there to be new conditions for what constitutes a charity and qualifies for tax relief, it should bring forward legislation, not leave it to the discretion of the Charity Commission and the courts.

Third Sector has additional information.

School Need Not Accommodate Teacher's Tuesday Sabbath

In Slocum v. Devezin, (ED LA, June 3, 2013), a Louisiana federal district court dismissed an elementary school teacher's Title VII religious accommodation lawsuit.  Special education teacher Joy Slocum wanted to take time off to observe her Sabbath from 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday until 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday each week. The school refused.  According to the court:

Accommodating Plaintiff's request to take off every Tuesday would require Defendants to hire a substitute teacher every week, or a part-time employee to cover every Tuesday, in addition to paying Plaintiff's salary, or perhaps would require her students to sit with another teacher's class – overloading the student-teacher ratio.... [O]bliging Plaintiff's request and accommodating her religious practices in this regard would require Defendants  to bear more than a de minimus cost, and as such would be an "undue hardship."

Louisiana Passes Bill Encouraging Student Use of School Space For Prayer

Last Saturday the Louisiana legislature gave final passage to HB 724 that encourages schools to allow students to use school space for prayer. The bill provides:

A. Upon the request of any public school student...  school authorities may permit students to gather for prayer in a classroom, auditorium, or other space that is not in use, at anytime before the school day begins when the school is open and students are allowed on campus, at any time after the school day ends provided that at least one student club or organization is meeting at that time, or at any noninstructional time during the school day. A school employee may be assigned to supervise the gathering if ... requested by the student ... and the school employee volunteers....

B. Any school employee may attend and participate in the gathering if it occurs before the employee's workday begins or after [it] ... ends.

C. Any parent may attend the gathering....

D. The students may invite persons from the community to attend and participate in the gathering if other school organizations ... are allowed to make similar invitations.

Wall of Separation blog sets out the concerns that American United have with the bill.

Missouri Governor Vetoes Anti-Foreign Law Bill

As reported by AP, yesterday Missouri Governor Jay Nixon vetoed (full text of veto message) S.B. No 267, the Civil Liberties Defense Act, which provided that any ruling by a court or tribunal will be void and unenforceable if it is based on any foreign law, legal code or system that is repugnant or inconsistent with the Missouri or U.S. constitutions. Bills such as this one are the outgrowth of earlier versions that were more explicitly directed at barring the application of Sharia law.  In vetoing the bill, the governor in part emphasized the problems that it would create with foreign adoptions by Missouri parents. Explaining his veto during a visit to a children's services agency, Nixon said:

This legislation seeks to solve a problem that does not exist, while creating the very real problem of jeopardizing Missouri's families' ability to adopt children from foreign countries.