Iowa Permits Faith-Based Prison Program To Continue Pending 8th Circuit Decision

Iowa prison officials have reached an agreement with the faith-based prison treatment program, InnerChange, permitting it to continue to operate-- at its own expense-- at Newton Correctional Facility pending the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals decision on whether the program violates the Establishment Clause. The Des Moines Register yesterday reported that Prison Fellowship will be permitted to operate the program without the state funding it has been receiving, but authorities will be able to shut it down immediately if the 8th Circuit agrees with last year's district court decision invalidating the program. The district court suspended its order while the appeal is pending. Prison officials also said they intend to seek bids for a new "values-based" treatment program at Newton Correctional Facility next year.

Recent Articles of Interest

From SSRN:
Cass R. Sunstein, On the Tension Between Sex Equality and Religious Freedom, (June 2007, U. of Chicago, Public Law Working Paper No. 167).

Ira C. Lupu & Robert W Tuttle, Instruments of Accommodation: The Military Chaplaincy and the Constitution, (West Virginia Law Review, Vol. 110, 2007).

Joshua D. Dunlap, When Big Brother Plays God: The Religion Clauses, Title VII, and the Ministerial Exception, (82 Notre Dame Law Review 2005 (2007)).

From Bepress:
Patrick McKinley Brennan, The Decreasing Ontological Density of the State in Catholic Social Doctrine, (Villinova Univ. Working Paper Series, 2007).

From SmartCILP:
Tom Lewis, What Not To Wear: Religious Rights, the European Court, and the Margin of Appreciation, 56 International & Comparative Law Quarterly 395-414 (2007).

David Morris Phillips, The Unexplored Option: Jewish Settlements in a Palestinian State, 25 Penn State International Law Review 75-205 (2006).

Reuven (Ruvi) Ziegler, The French "Headscarves Ban": Intolerance or Necessity?, 40 John Marshall Law Review 235-266 (2006).

Colloquium: Religion and Immigration. Articles by Amelia J. Uelmen, Michael Scaperlands, Stephen H. Legomsky, Elizabeth McCormick, Patrick McCormick, Marta Vides Saade, Kathryn A. Lee and Michael J. Churgin. 83 University of Detroit Mercy Law Review 829-953 (2006).

Symposium: Law and Religion. McElroy Lecture by Cass R. Sunstein; articles by Deniz Coskun, Peter Cumper, Peter Edge, Silvio Ferrari, Charles I. Lugosi, Asher Maoz, Kurt Martens, Renata Uitz and Howard J. Vogel. 83 University of Detroit Mercy Law Review 567-827 (2006).

Businessman Challenges Indonesia's Limits On Polygamy

Indonesian law permits polygamy only where a first wife is childless, or terminally ill or unable to fulfill her sexual obligations and where that wife gives her consent. However recently a number of prominent Indonesians, claiming that Islam allows up to four wives, have ignored the legal restrictions. Now, according to the Sydney, Australia Herald, an Indonesian businessman has begun a court challenge to Indonesia's restrictions on polygamy. Muhammad Insa says that his right to religious freedom is being restricted by the Marriage Act (background), and has filed suit in the Constitutional Court challenging the Marriage Office's refusal to permit him to take a second wife without getting his present wife's agreement.

9th Circuit Decides Burden of Proof In Reverse Religious Discrimination Case

In a 9th Circuit case from last month, the court decided on the appropriate burden that a plaintiff must carry to avoid dismissal before trial in a case alleging "reverse" religious discrimination under Title VII. In Noyes v. Kelly Services, (9th Cir., May 29, 2007), a former Kelly Services employee alleged that her supervisor repeatedly favored and promoted his coreligionists-- members of the Fellowship of Friends-- and passed over Noyes for promotion because she was not share those religious beliefs. The court held that once the employer articulated a non-discriminatory reason to explain a prima facie showing of discrimination, the plaintiff needed to come forward with proof that the explanation was a pretext. At the summary judgment stage, plaintiff can raise enough of an issue that the case must go to trial if she presents either direct evidence of discrimination or indirect evidence that undercuts the credibility of the employer's explanation.

Georgia Officials Exclude Muslim Woman Wearing Hijab From Courtroom

In a press release yesterday, the Council on American-Islamic Relations said that security officers at the Valdosta, Georgia Municipal Court refused to allow a Muslim woman to enter the courtroom wearing her hijab (headscarf). The woman decided to plead nolo contendere to her speeding ticket, after being informed that court rules would prevent her from wearing her head covering into the courtroom at any time. Later, through the clerk of courts, Judge Vernita Lee Bender apologized, but apparently said "we have rules that everyone has to follow". CAIR has written Georgia's Attorney General asking him to take appropriate steps to prevent this kind of religious discrimination, which CAIR says violates federal civil rights protections and is inconsistent with the Georgia Code of Judicial Conduct.

Two Plaintiffs Lose Religious Discrimination Suits

Two Title VII employment discrimination decisions alleging religious bias were handed down this week. In Postell v. Greene County Hospital Authority, 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 46593 (MD GA, June 27, 2007), a Georgia federal district court held that a nurse who had been fired had failed to prove religious discrimination, despite a letter from her supervisor that said: "You had an incredible opportunity to shine as a manager and most importantly as a Christian and you failed."

In Nuha Saabiraah El v. City of New York, 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 46443 (SDNY, June 26, 2007), a New York federal district court dismissed on res judicata grounds a claim by a fired employee of the New York Department of Corrections. Plaintiff claimed that her dismissal violated her 1st and 14th Amendment and her statutory rights because the Department of Corrections, in disciplining her, was motivated by the fact that she was associated with the Moorish-American faith-- a group that DOC thought posed security concerns.

Michigan Supreme Court Rejects Church's RLUIPA Claim

On Wednesday, in Greater Bible Way Temple of Jackson v. City of Jackson, (MI Sup. Ct., June 27, 2007), the Michigan Supreme Court rejected a claim by Greater Bible Way Temple that Jackson, Michigan violated the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Person's Act by refusing to rezone property on which the church wished to build an assisted living apartment complex. In a rather broad-based reversal of the court of appeals (see prior posting), the Supreme Court said:

We conclude that a refusal to rezone does not constitute an "individualized assessment," and, thus, that RLUIPA is inapplicable. Further, even if RLUIPA is applicable, the building of an apartment complex does not constitute a "religious exercise," and even if it does constitute a "religious exercise," the city of Jackson’s refusal to rezone plaintiff's property did not substantially burden plaintiff's religious exercise, and even if it did substantially burden plaintiff's religious exercise, the imposition of that burden is in furtherance of a compelling governmental interest and constitutes the least restrictive means of furthering that interest.

Two justices wrote concurring opinions urging reversal on narrower grounds. Yesterday's Jackson Citizen Patriot reported on the decision. [Thanks to Brian D. Wassom for the lead.]

City Amends Noise Ordinance and Settles Preacher's Challenge to Restrictions

The Jacksonville, Alabama News reported Wednesday that the city of Jacksonville has settled a civil rights lawsuit brought against it by Rev. Wesley Sewell challenging the city's restrictions on use of loudspeakers and its permit ordinance. (See prior posting.) The city will pay Sewell $500 in damages and $9500 in attorneys' fees. The settlement came after the city changed its loudspeaker ordinance to extend from 10 feet to 30 feet the distance sounds can project without violating the anti-noise ordinance.

British Sources Say Tony Blair Will Convert To Cathoicism

Largely overlooked in the U.S. media are reports out of Britain last week that Tony Blair, who has just resigned as Britain's prime minister, will convert to Catholicism. The Guardian is among those papers reporting on Blair's apparent decision. Blair's wife is Catholic and his children have been raised as Catholics. However, he has held off formal conversion apparently for political reasons. While there is not a specific ban on the prime minister being a Catholic, British law does bar the king or queen from becoming Catholic or marrying a Catholic. Christian Today last week reported that Blair's meeting last Saturday with Pope Benedict XVI was in part in preparation for his conversion. Commenting today on Blair's move, Ireland's Southern Star says that the remaining prohibitions on British monarchs embracing Catholicism, which stem from the 1701 Act of Settlement, violate the European Convention on Human Rights, Sec. I, Art. 9. In an interesting aside, the Southern Star article refers to the Old Bailey website that links to records of over 100,000 trials that took place between 1674 and 1834, including "cases of 'notorious papists' who suffered appalling death sentences for offences such as saying mass."

Moldova's President Rejects Parliament's Law On Religious Groups

Itar-Tass reported yesterday that Moldova's President, Vladimir Voronin, has refused to sign a new law on religious faiths passed by Parliament last month. He returned it to parliament for revisions, heeding objections raised by the Moldovan Orthodox archdiocese. Orthodox priests object that the law does not distinguish traditional denominations from newer religions that have multiplied in Moldova in recent years. They also say that the law does not distinguish pseudo-religious and commercial cults from mainstream religions. A long-standing dispute exists over whether the Moldovan Orthodox Church is a legitimate religious group. The Russian Orthodox Church says it is not, but Moldova granted it official recognition in 2002 after a decision of the European Court of Human Rights called for that step to be taken. (Background).

Fired University Chaplain Now Asserts A Title IX Discrimination Claim

After losing her attempt to get the U.S. Supreme Court to review her Title VII gender discrimination claims (see prior posting), former Gannon University chaplain, Lynette Petruska, has asked a federal district judge to permit her to file a claim under Title IX of the 1964 Civil rights Act. That provision requires gender equality by schools that receive federal funding. Petruska's Title VII claim was rejected under the "ministerial exception" doctrine, and at issue will be whether the same exception applies in Title IX cases. Yesterday's Philadelphia Daily News reports that Petruska, a former Catholic nun, is now an attorney in St. Louis.

President Helps Rededicate DC's Islamic Center

Yesterday, President George W. Bush participated in the rededication of Washington, DC's Islamic Center. The rededication took place 50 years after President Eisenhower attended the original dedication of the Center. In his remarks (full text), the President said:

The greatest challenge facing people of conscience is to help the forces of moderation win the great struggle against extremism that is now playing out across the broader Middle East. We've seen the expansion of the concept of religious freedom and individual rights in every region of the world -- except one. In the Middle East, we have seen instead the rise of a group of extremists who seek to use religion as a path to power and a means of domination.

The President also announced that, for the first time, he would appoint a special envoy to the Organization of the Islamic Conference as part of the country's efforts to reach out to Muslim communities around the world. A White House "Fact Sheet" emphasized the opportunity that exists to help forces of moderation oppose radicals who purport to act in the name of Islam.

British Schools Face Problems In Attempt To Serve Halal Lunches

Two local Councils in Britain find themselves in the middle of a dispute in the Islamic community over which bodies are the appropriate certifiers of Halal meat. Schools in the localities have halal meat on their lunch menus, but have recently changed their meat supplier. This Is Lancashire yesterday reported that the Lancashire Council of Mosques has urged parents to have their children select vegetarian options or take their own lunches until the controversy is resolved. The new supplier gets its meat from New Zealand, and the meat is certified by the non-profit Halal Food Authority. Salim Mulla, secretary of the Lancashire Council of Mosques, says they want the meat certified instead by the Halal Monitoring Committee. Lancashire County Council has replaced meat with an alternative option until the situation is resolved, while Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council is keeping halal meat on the menu, but is meeting with mosque council leaders to resolve any problems.

Judge Refuses To Keep Media Out of Imams' Civil Rights Trial

Omar T. Mohammedi, a New York attorney for the six imams who have filed a civil rights action after they were removed from a US Airways flight at the Minneapolis airport, has lost his bid to reduce media access to the trial proceedings. Mohammedi says that he and his clients have received anonymous death threats after inaccurate media coverage of the lawsuit. The Associated Press yesterday reported that U.S. District Judge Ann Montgomery refused Mohammedi's request that members of the media be removed from an electronic distribution list, that they be excluded from attending hearings in the case and that proceedings in the case be held in closed session. The judge also told Mohammedi that future communications in the case should be filed through the court's electronic filing system, instead submitting requests off the record as Mohammedi had done in seeking less media involvement.

New Abuse Charges Against Saudi Arabia's Commission for Prevention of Vice

The Associated Press reported yesterday that new charges of police brutality have been raised against an officer in Saudi Arabia's Commission for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice. Last week, three officers were charged with involvement in the death of a detained border patrol guard. (See prior posting.) The new charges involve last month's death in detention of Sulaiman al-Huraisi who was taken into custody after a raid on his house because he was suspected of having large amounts of alcohol. Alcohol is illegal in Saudi Arabia. The governor of Riyadh said that several officers who were not part of the official team charged with making the raid nevertheless took part in it. One of those individuals severely beat al-Huraisi.

School Board Debates Religious Released Time Program

Canastota, New York's Board of Education on Tuesday debated the extent to which it should release students who wish to attend religious education classes at the end of the school day. Yesterday's Oneida Dispatch reports that St. Agatha's Church wants the school to bus students to classes at the church for the last hour of the school day. School officials prefer releasing students only after the school day is over. Supporters of the religious education program say that moving the classes to after normal school hours will significantly reduce student attendance at them.

British Judges Reach Out To Muslim Community

A report from Islam Online reprinted by Turkish Weekly discusses efforts by a group of 45 judges in England and Wales to reach out to local religious minorities, especially Muslims, in order to heighten their confidence in the judicial system. Members of the group are known as Ethnic Minority Liaison Judges (EMLJ). They visit mosques and schools and arrange for visits to the courts. Their goal is both to get people to understand the judicial system and to encourage them to apply for jobs in the courts. Earlier this year, EMLJ released its annual report for 2005-06.

Church-State Conflict Over Jesus Picture In Courthouse Continues

A small Slidell, Louisiana courthouse is becoming the latest symbol in church-state conflict. As previously reported, the ACLU has threatened to sue if the picture of Jesus that hangs in the courthouse lobby is not removed. On Tuesday night, according to the New Orleans Times-Picayune, 250 Slidell residents held a "revival-like" demonstration in support of keeping the picture. Some protesters argued that the picture-- a reproduction of a 16th century Russian Orthodox icon-- is artistic expression, not proselytizing. Another, however, said: "Christians are seen as very passive. It's time for Christian people to stand up and say, 'Hey!'"

German Pastor Convicted Under Holocaust Denial Ban For Abortion Comments-- UPDATE: Story Retracted

Life Site News reports that in Erlangen, Bavaria, a city court has convicted Lutheran Pastor Johannes Lerle of violating Germany's Volkverhetzung law that is used to combat Holocaust denial. Lerle was sentenced to one year in jail for comparing abortion in Germany to the murder of innocent Jews in Auschwitz. Commenting on reports of the conviction, the Becket Fund's Angela C. Wu said: "While Volksverhetzung laws exist in Germany because of its unique history, that is no excuse for illegally violating the international human right to freedom of belief, which must include the right to profess those beliefs, even those of a controversial nature."

UPDATE: In an unusual move, Life Site News on Thursday issued the following statement:

The LifeSiteNews.com story published Tuesday on the jailing of Pastor Lerle in Germany has been retracted after LifeSiteNews.com was informed that we were working with false information from trusted news sources. While Pastor Lerle has in the past been jailed for anti-abortion activities his current one year imprisonment stemmed solely from charges of holocaust denial and not from comparing abortion to the Nazi Holocaust as we erroneously reported Tuesday.

[Thanks to Patrick Gallagher for the update lead.]

California Court Upholds Episcopal Church's Right To Property of Dissident Parish

In a 77-page opinion filed on Monday, the California Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District held that in a dispute over the ownership of church property of a break-away congregation, a general church has the clear right to enforce a governing instrument that provides for a trust against the property of a local member parish. In Episcopal Church Cases, (CA Ct. App., June 25, 2007) the court said that a long line of state and U.S. Supreme Court decisions require using the "principle of government" or "highest church judicatory" approach in resolving church property disputes. The court rejected the "neutral principles"approach to church property disputes that was taken by the lower court (see prior posting), and that has been taken by a number of other California appellate courts.

The court also rejected arguments by St. James Parish that its free speech and free exercise rights were being violated. The court said that the lawsuit: "is a property dispute -- basically over who controls a particular church building in Newport Beach -- and does not arise out of some desire on the part of the general church to litigate the free exercise rights of the local congregation. They are free to disaffiliate just so long as they do not try to take the parish property with them."

Reporting on the decision, yesterday's Orange County Register points out that at issue was the decision of St. James Parish to split off from the Episcopal Church in a dispute over scriptural doctrine and homosexuality. The Court of Appeals emphasized, however, that the reason for the parish's decision to break away was irrelevant to its decision.

UPDATE: In an unpublished opinion filed the same day, the court relied on its analysis relating to St. James Parish to reach the same result as to two other breakaway parishes-- All Saints in Long Beach, and St. David's in North Hollywood. Episcopal Church Cases II, (CA Ct. App., June 25, 2007). [Thanks to Jeffrey Hassler, via Religionlaw listserv for the lead.]