Objective coverage of church-state and religious liberty developments, with extensive links to primary sources.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
8th Circuit Hears Oral Arguments In School Busing Case
Scientology Denied Restraining Order Against Anonymous Protesters
Craiglist Not Publisher of Discriminatory Classifieds On Its Website
In a statement issued after the decision, the Lawyer's Committee for Civil Rights said: "While we are of course disappointed with the overall outcome of the case, we are gratified that the Court emphasized in the final paragraph of its decision that landlords and other housing providers who post discriminatory advertisements remain fully liable under the federal fair housing laws." Today's San Francisco Chronicle reports on the decision.
Article Suggests Path For Modern Revival of Shariah
One big reason that Islamist political parties do so well running on a Shariah platform is that their constituents recognize that Shariah once augured a balanced state in which legal rights were respected.... [T]he traditional Islamic constitution rested on a balance of powers between a ruler subject to law and a class of scholars who interpreted and administered that law. The governments of most contemporary majority-Muslim states, however, have lost these features. Rulers govern as if they were above the law, not subject to it, and the scholars who once wielded so much influence are much reduced in status....
In the early 19th century, the Ottoman empire responded to military setbacks with an internal reform movement. The most important reform was the attempt to codify Shariah. This Westernizing process, foreign to the Islamic legal tradition, sought to transform Shariah from a body of doctrines and principles to be discovered by the human efforts of the scholars into a set of rules that could be looked up in a book. Once the law existed in codified form, however, the law itself was able to replace the scholars as the source of authority....
It is possible to imagine the electoral success of Islamist parties putting pressure on executives to satisfy the demand for law-based government embodied in Koranic law. This might bring about a transformation of the judiciary, in which judges would come to think of themselves as agents of the law rather than as agents of the state.
Christian Home School Basketball Tournament Fields Serious Teams
Spain's Muslims Face Hurdles In Acquiring Land For Mosques
Recent Prisoner Free Exercise Cases
In Pressley v. Johnson, (3rd Cir., March 10, 2008), the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed dismissal of a prisoner's claim that his religious materials had been destroyed. The court said that plaintiff failed to elaborate on what religious materials were confiscated or how the destruction infringed his free exercise rights.
In Shabazz v. Barrow, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 18130 (MD GA, March 10, 2008), a Georgia federal district court agreed with a federal magistrate's determination that a prison had legitimate penological interests in refusing separate worship services for Nation of Islam inmates.
In Ibrahim v. District of Columbia, (D DC, March 12, 2008), the federal district court for the District of Columbia held that it lacked personal jurisdiction over an individual prison employee who was sued for damages for denying plaintiff his leather kufi that he wears for religious reasons.
In Scott v. California Supreme Court, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 19040 (ED CA, March 12, 2008), a California federal district court remanded to a federal magistrate judge a prisoner's complaint that he was not permitted to change his name for religious reasons. The remand was occasioned by the 9th Circuit's intervening rejection of the "centrality of belief" test in Shakur v. Schriro.
In Hill v. Pylant, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 19142 (WD LA, Jan. 18, 2008), a Louisiana federal magistrate judge recommended that a Muslim prisoner's free exercise and RLUIPA claims be dismissed as frivolous. Plaintiff sought to have the prison arrange for Islamic clergy with call outs for Islamic prayer, but the court found that there was a lack of available clergy or volunteers. As to an allegation about religious diet, the court said that plaintiff did not allege that he was prevented from observing Islamic dietary practices.
In Harnett v. Barr, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 19236 (ND NY, March 10, 2008), a New York federal district court permitted a Muslim inmate to proceed with free exercise and RLUIPA claims. Plaintiff alleged that officials threw away away his Ramadan food during a cell search, that he was denied a "sweet breakfast" at the end of Ramadan, and that he was denied permission to hem his pants above his ankles and to save food in his cell on Mondays and Thursdays.
In Viggers v. Crawford, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 19395 (WD MO, March 10, 2008), a Missouri federal district court rejected a magistrate's recommendation to dismiss free exercise and RLUIPA claims brought by a Native American prisoner. The court said that it must determine whether a personalized-length smoking pipe is a central tenant of plaintiff's Native American religion and whether the denial of such a pipe substantially burdens the practice of plaintiff's Native American religion. UPDATE: The magistrate's recommendation is at 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 22051 (WD MO, Jan. 31, 2008).
The Sioux Falls (SD) Argus Leader reports on a South Dakota federal magistrate judge's report filed March 5 recommending dismissal of free exercise claims brought by a convicted killer who is an Asatru adherent. After prior litigation, prisoner Darrell Hoadley had been permitted to have a ritual drinking horn, wooden wand and wooden hammer. Now he is seeking additional items, including horse meat and a plastic sword. The court concluded that Hoadley's religious freedom has not been meaningfully curtailed, and that because his security status bars him from group religious activity, he cannot bring a class action on behalf of others. UPDATE: The Argus Leader reports that on March 31 the court dismissed Hoadley's claims, adopting the magistrate's report and recommendations.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Town Trustee's Suit Over Pledge Refusal Recall Is Dismissed
Friday, March 14, 2008
State Department Releases Report On Global Anti-Semitism
This report ... reflects the United States' deep commitment to take a strong stand against growing anti-Semitism around the world. [It] ... is dedicated to the memory of Tom Lantos.... The report is thematic in nature and ... provides a broad overview of anti-Semitic incidents, discourse and trends. [It] ... documents traditional forms of anti-Semitism ... but also discusses new manifestations ... including instances when criticism of Israel and Zionism crosses the line into anti-Semitism. The report covers anti-Semitism in both government and private media, and within the United Nations system. It concludes with a review of governmental and nongovernmental efforts to combat the problem. The report is meant to serve as a resource for increasing understanding of contemporary forms of anti-Semitism and for shaping strategies to combat this growing problem worldwide.