Recent Prisoner Free Excercise Cases

In Zapata v. Brandenburg, (10th Cir., Aug. 25, 2008), the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of a prisoner's claim that he was removed from a faith-based program because he refused to convert to a different faith. The lower court found that the removal was related to legitimate penological interests-- he was combative and threatening toward other inmates and staff.

In Hughes v. Banks, (8th Cir., Sept. 3, 2008), the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed dismissal of a free exercise claim by a prisoner who alleged that when he refused to comply with staff-precaution procedures, he was not given meals. This caused him to miss meals during Ramadan.

In Baker v. Schriro, 2008 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 66284 (D AZ, Aug. 20, 2008), an Arizona federal district court refused to dismiss a prisoner's claim that prison authorities destroyed his religious materials without any legitimate penological objective.

Palin and Jews For Jesus Speaker Both Clarify Their Views

As Sarah Palin's religious views are closely scrutinized by the media, last week remarks of a guest speaker at her Wasilla church were widely circulated. Jews for Jesus executive director, David Brickner spoke there, and his remarks were characterized as suggesting that conflict in the Middle East was a punishment for Israel's not accepting Jesus. (See prior posting.) Now Brickner says that his statements were misinterpreted. In a posting on Jews for Jesus website, he said that he was referring to "the need for all people, both Jews or Gentiles, to repent and seek forgiveness through Y'shua." Meanwhile, MSNBC reports the McCain campaign made clear that Palin does not share Brickner's views. McCain-Palin spokesman Taylor Griffin said: "This was a guest at the church who Governor Palin did not know would be speaking. Gov. Palin does not share the views he expressed, and she and her family would not have been sitting in the pews of this church for the last seven years if his remarks were even remotely typical." [Thanks to a commenter on my prior posting for the lead.]

Colorado Company Faces Dispute Over Ramadan Accommodation For Workers

In Greeley, Colorado, JBS Swift & Co. finds itself in the middle of protests regarding the appropriate accommodation of religious practices of its many Muslim employees-- mostly African refugees-- who are fasting during Ramadan. Today's Greeley Tribune reports that those working the late shift want their break time moved up to 7:30 pm so they can break their fast at sundown. Non-Muslim employees say it is unfair to give accommodation to Muslim employees that are not available to others. Federal law requires reasonable accommodation of workers' religious practices.

8th Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Religious Challenge To Controlled Substances Acts

In Olsen v. Mukasey, (8th Cir., Sept. 8, 2008), the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals held that plaintiff's attempt to enjoin enforcement against him of the federal and Iowa's controlled substances acts should be dismissed. Carl Olsen, a member of the Ethiopian Zion Coptic Church, uses marijuana for sacramental purposes. The court concluded the Olsen's RFRA, free exercise and equal protection claims were barred by collateral estoppel. His claims had been previously adjudicated in state and federal criminal prosecutions against him. The court held that RLUIPA does not apply because Olsen is not an institutionalized person. The court's decision affirms the dismissal of Olsen's claims by the district court.

Biden's Remarks On "Life" Trigger Bishops' Response

Catholic bishops around the country have reacted strongly to remarks by Democratic vice-presidential nominee Joseph Biden on last Sunday's "Meet the Press" (full transcript). Asked by interviewer Tom Brokaw what he would tell Sen. Obama if he asked Biden when life begins, Biden replied:

I'd say, "Look, I know when it begins for me." It's a personal and private issue. For me, as a Roman Catholic, I'm prepared to accept the teachings of my church. But let me tell you. There are an awful lot of people of great confessional faiths--Protestants, Jews, Muslims and others--who have a different view. They believe in God as strongly as I do. They're intensely as religious as I am religious. They believe in their faith and they believe in human life, and they have differing views...

I'm prepared as a matter of faith to accept that life begins at the moment of conception. But that is my judgment. For me to impose that judgment on everyone else who is equally and maybe even more devout than I am seems to me is inappropriate in a pluralistic society....

MR. BROKAW: But if you, you believe that life begins at conception, and you've also voted for abortion rights...

SEN. BIDEN: No ... I voted against telling everyone else in the country that they have to accept my religiously based view that it's a moment of conception. There is a debate in our church, as Cardinal Egan would acknowledge, that's existed.... [W]hen Thomas Aquinas wrote "Summa Theologia," he said ... it didn't occur until quickening, 40 days after conception....

Catholic News Agency yesterday reported on responses to Biden's remarks by Madison, (WI) Bishop Robert C. Morlino and Archbishop of Denver Charles J. Chaput. Bishop Morlino discarded his prepared Sunday homily in order to make impromptu remarks on Biden. He said that Biden does not understand the difference between "religious faith and natural law." He explained: "Any human being -- regardless of his faith, his religious practice or having no faith -- any human being can reason to the fact that human life from conception unto natural death is sacred."

Denver's Archbishop Charles J. Chaput and auxiliary Bishop James D. Conley issued a statement similarly criticizing Biden, saying that while there may be a debate over when "personhood" begins, there is no doubt that human life begins at conception. They argued that: "Resistance to abortion is a matter of human rights, not religious opinion."

Dutch Court Creates Controversy In Accomodating Beliefs of Muslim Lawyer

Courts in Europe continue to struggle with questions of accommodating Muslim religious practices. NIS News today reports that the Dutch Bar Association, along with politicians from both the ruling and opposition parties, oppose a ruling by a Rotterdam judge that Muslim lawyer Mohammed Enait need not rise when judges enter the courtroom. Enait says that standing for a judge would violate his Muslim religious beliefs that all people are equal. Enait is a controversial figure, previously having been embroiled in a dispute regarding his refusal to shake hands with women, even though his law firm's website carries pictures of two porn actresses who are supposedly the firm's secretaries.

City Says RLUIPA Limits Its Response To Distracting Church Sign

A church sign near Interstate 90 in Janesville, Wisconsin is too bright and so is distracting to motorists. However, according to yesterday's Church Solutions, the city will merely request that the church dim the sign. It will not require the church to do so, saying that the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act protects the church's right to display the sign.

British Unions Call For Removal of Anti-Gay Equality Commissioner

In Britain, the Trade Unions Conference has unanimously called for the removal of Joel Edwards as one of the 17 commissioners on the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC). Edwards, who was appointed to the new Commission created by the Equality Act 2006, is director of the Evangelical Alliance and a senior figure in Britain's black community. Pink News reported yesterday that those seeking Edwards removal say that the Evangelical Alliance is one of the strongest opponents of gay rights in the UK, and has previously launched large-scale campaigns against the Sexual Orientation Regulations that are now enforced by the EHRC.

Scientology Faces Charges In France; Takes Offensive Against YouTube

Jurist and AFP report that on Monday a French judge ordered the Church of Scientology to appear before a Paris Magistrate's Court to face criminal charges of organized fraud and ordered seven of its members to face charges of illegal practice of pharmacy. The cases arise out of a complaint by a woman that she paid over $28,000 (US), for classes, books, medications and an electrometer.

Meanwhile, the Electronic Frontier Foundation reports that in 12 hours last week (between Thursday and Friday), American Rights Counsel sent out over 4000 DMCA takedown notices to YouTube, all claiming copyright infringement by posted videos that were critical of the Church of Scientology. Many YouTube users responed with DMCA counter-notices.

Amish Men's Trial Delayed Over Obtaining Counsel

Yesterday's Watertown (NY) Daily Times reports that Hammond, New York's civil lawsuit against two members of the Swartzentruber Amish sect to enforce compliance with building codes has been delayed because defendants' religious beliefs are preventing them from obtaining attorneys. Amish refuse on religious grounds to retain attorneys, but will permit the court to appoint counsel or will permit counsel to intervene on their behalf. Public defender Steven Ballan was appointed to represent Joseph J. Swartzentruber and Henry D. Mast in criminal proceedings against them in Morristown, but he cannot represent them in a civil case. (See prior posting.) Nor may the court appoint counsel. Ballan is working to get a religious freedom group to intervene on behalf of the two Amish men. At issue in the lawsuit is the refusal of defendants to obtain building permits, install smoke detectors or get engineer-approved designs for homes they built.

Russian Prosecutors Say "South Park" Incites Religious Hatred

In 2006, Russia passed a law expanding the definition of extremism to include "inciting religious and national hatred." According to Reuters today, prosecutors in Moscow's region of Basmanny have filed a motion in court against the television station 2x2 seeking to ban the U.S. show South Park. Prosecutors' action came after the Russian Union of Christians of Evangelical Faith (RUCEF) filed a complaint against an episode of the program titled Mr. Hankey's Christmas Classics. The episode was broadcast in Moscow in January, dubbed into Russian. Prosecutors say the episode "bore signs of extremist activity." RUCEF says that South Park is just one of many cartoons that need to be banned because they insult religious believers and incite religious and national hatred.

French Secularists Attack Judge's Postponement of Trial for Ramadan

BBC News reported yesterday on the strong reaction of those who defend French secularism to a French court's decision to grant a Muslim defendant a trial delay. The trial was scheduled to start Sept. 16, but a lawyer for one of the seven men in Rennes charged with armed robbery told the court that this is in the middle of Ramadan, and his fasting client would not be in a position to defend himself properly. Fadela Amara, the government's Minister for Urban Affairs, called the trial's delay until January a "knife wound" in the principle of a secular republic. The reaction of French politicians was so strong that the prosecutor issued a denial that the postponement was because of Ramadan.

Recent Articles on Law and Religion

From SSRN:

• Paul E. Mcgreal, Constitutional Easements: A New Approach to Permanent Monuments in Traditional Public Forums , (Northwestern University Law Review Colloquy, Sept. 5, 2008).
• Mark S. Scarberry, John Leland and James Madison: Religious Influence on the Ratification of the Constitution and on the Proposal of the Bill of Rights, (September 2, 2008).
• David D. Cole, Terror Financing, Guilt by Association and the Paradigm of Prevention in the 'War on Terror', in COUNTERTERRORISM: DEMOCRACY'S CHALLENGE, Bianchi, Keller eds., Hart Publishing, (Sept. 3, 2008).
• Mary Jean Dolan, Why Donated Monuments are Government Speech: The Hard Case of Pleasant Grove City v. Summum, (Catholic University Law Review, Vol. 58, No. 1, 2008).
• Alison M. Kilmartin, Free Exercise, Free Speech, and 'Mere Religious Worship', (Sept. 1, 2008).
• Joseph (Yossi) E. David, Maimonides, Nature and Natural Law (Journal of Law Philosophy and Culture, Sept. 3, 2008).
• Benjamin L. Berger, The Cultural Limits of Legal Tolerance, (Canadian Journal of Law and Jurisprudence, Sept. 1, 2008).
• David L. Sjoquist & Rayna Stoycheva, The Property Tax Exemption for Nonprofits, Andrew Young School of Policy Studies Research Paper Series No. 08-15 (July 2008).

The Sept./ Oct. 2008 issue of Liberty Online: A Magazine of Religious Freedom has recently appeared. (Full text of articles.)

Pastor Seeks Church Support For Church-State Separation

Americans United reported Friday on the initiative by an Ohio pastor to coordinate church support for separation of church and state. Rev. Eric Williams, senior pastor of Columbus (OH)North Congregational United Church of Christ, is calling for pastors around the country to preach sermons on the importance of church-state separation on Sept. 21. This is one week before Alliance Defense Fund's "Pulpit Freedom Sunday." ADF has called on pastors to preach sermons about candidates on that Sunday, in violation of Internal Revenue Code limits on non-profit organizations. (See prior posting.) Rev. Williams will be holding a press conference tomorrow to announce a joint clergy letter asking the IRS to revoke the tax-exempt status of Alliance Defense Fund. Williams says: "The promotion of tax fraud, particularly to houses of worship, is not a charitable endeavor."

China Increases Ramadan Restrictions On Uyghurs

Radio Free Asia reported yesterday that in response to a string of violent attacks in the central-Asian Xinjiang region, China is increasing restrictions on its Muslim Uyghur population during Ramadan. Women are being forced to uncover their faces in public, restrictions on teaching Islam to Uyghur children are being intensified, and Muslim Uyghur restaurants are being required to be open during the daytime throughout Ramadan. Special efforts are underway in schools to teach students and teachers not to fast during Ramadan.

Marijuana Church Founders Plead Guilty; Will Pursue Free Exercise Defense

Arizona's East Valley Tribune yesterday reported that Dan and Mary Quaintance, founders of the Church of Cognizance, last month pleaded guilty in an Arizona federal district court to two marijuana-related charges. They will now pursue an appeal of the court's refusal to dismiss charges against them on free exercise grounds. The Arizona-based church which has "monasteries" in members' homes around the country, has as its motto: "With good thoughts, good words and good deeds, we honor marijuana: as the teacher, the provider, the protector." (See prior related posting.)

Nigerian Court Decides In Favor of Break-Away Church

Lagos, Nigeria's Sunday Vanguard reports today on a decision by the Federal High Court of Nigeria in a suit involving a break-away church-- Incorporated Trustees of United African Methodist Church (Eleja) Organization v. Incorporated Trustees of the United African Methodist Church (Evangelical), (No. FHC/L/CS/173/07). First the court upheld a ruling by the Corporate Affairs Commission that the break-away congregation could incorporate under the name United African Methodist Church (Evangelical). The Commission had found that its name was not identical or likely to confuse or deceive the public-- apparently a requirement of Nigeria's corporation law. The High Court held that it could not enjoin an organization from using a name which contains words in ordinary use. The court went on to hold that it lacked jurisdiction to adjudicate the Eleja church's claim that it is still entitled to occupancy of the break-away church's building. It held that under the Lands Use Act, a state high court is the appropriate forum to decide that issue.

Lawsuit In Argentina Asks Court To Define Anti-Semitism

Iran’s MEHR News Agency reports on a criminal lawsuit filed in Argentina by three members of the Argentine Second Republic Movement against the Delegation of Israeli Associations in Argentina (DAIA). The lawsuit filed in District Court No. 13, Secretariat No. 80 in Buenos Aires, focuses on the DAIA’s "Report on Anti-Semitism in Argentina—2006", which accused plaintiffs of "virulent anti-Semitism" because of articles they published. The lawsuit alleges that plaintiffs were slandered by the DAIA report because the articles in question were aimed only at official policies of Israel and at Zionism as a political ideology. The lawsuit seeks to have the Argentine court hold that criticism of the policies of Israel and criticism of Zionist ideology is not not anti-Semitism or discrimination on account of "religious belief." Religious discrimination is illegal under the Argentine Discrimination Act, Law No 23.592.

Some Qatar Companies Ignore Ramadan Reduced Hours Rule

Today’s Gulf Times reports that some employers in Qatar are ignoring rules that limit the work day to 6 hours during Ramadan. The Times says that some companies are continuing their normal 8-hour shifts, particularly for low-paid laborers, but just giving workers longer prayer times during Ramadan. Apparently the country’s Ministry of Labor has little interest in enforcing the6-hour workday requirement.

Citation of Meat Packer Raises Issue of Feds Judging Religious Rules

Yesterday’s Chicago Tribune reports that the U.S. Department of Agriculture cited Agriprocessors' Postville, Iowa meat packing plant for violations of the Humane Methods of Livestock Slaughter Act within days of PETA filing a complaint along with an undercover video it had taken of the firm’s kosher slaughter methods. The citation raises interesting questions of the extent to which the government may decide what are the religious rules of kosher slaughter.

7 USC 702(b) provides that it is consistent with the Humane Slaughter Act for slaughter to be carried out "in accordance with the ritual requirements of the Jewish faith or any other religious faith that prescribes a method of slaughter whereby the animal suffers loss of consciousness ... by ... the simultaneous and instantaneous severance of the carotid arteries..." The PETA video shows slaughterers making a second cut to a cow's neck without rabbinical supervision of that cut. Apparently the theory of the citation is that the second cut is inconsistent with kosher slaughter and therefore not within the protection of the statute. However, Menachem Lubinsky, a spokesman for Agriprocessors says a second cut when slaughtering cattle is permitted by kosher slaughter rules. The USDA citation led to no fine or other penalties.