7th Circuit Oral Arguments In Challenge To Cross Display On Riverfront

Yesterday, the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments (audio of full arguments) in Cabral v. City of Evansville. In the case, an Indiana federal district court enjoined the city of Evansville from permitting Westside Christian Church and other religious organizations from erecting a planned display of  31 six-foot tall crosses on the city's 4-block Riverfront area. (See prior posting.) AP reports on yesterday's oral arguments.

Investigative Report Looks At Chabad Collections In Russia That Have Been Subject of Extensive US Litigation

The Forward today has a long and interesting report from Russia on the two expropriated collections of valuable Jewish religious books and manuscripts (the Schneerson Library and the Archive) that have been the subject of extensive litigation in the United States. The American Chabad organization, Agudas Chasidei Chabad, has obtained U.S. judgments ordering the collections returned to it in the United States. (See prior posting.) One of the collections, the Schneersohn Library, which was nationalized by the Bolsheviks after the 1917 Russian Revolution and has been in the Russian State Library in Moscow, is now being digitized and moved to Moscow's new Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center, a $50 million institution controlled by the Russian branch of Chabad. This implements a proposed compromise that Russian President Vladimir Putin previously suggested. Forward's investigative reporter visited the room at the Jewish Museum and Tolerance Center which is housing the collection as it is moved there, and reports on the ease of access to it. Boruch Gorin who heads the Jewish Museum favors this arrangement and sees the possibility that if it were accepted, eventually the other collection, the Archive, which consists of documents plundered by the Nazis and taken back by the Red Army in World War II, could be sent to the United States. He says that the uncompromising strategy of Chasidei Chabad threatens that possibility.

UN Commission Finds Severe Human Rights Abuses, Including Religious Persecution, In North Korea

The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights announced yesterday the release of the report of a commission of inquiry on human rights abuses in North Korea. The 36-page report of the commission dated Feb. 7 (full text) says:

24. The commission finds that systematic, widespread and gross human rights violations have been and are being committed by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.  In many instances, the violations found entailed crimes against humanity based on State policies....

The report includes findings on religious persecution by North Korea:

31. The State considers the spread of Christianity a particularly serious threat, since it challenges ideologically the official personality cult and provides a platform for social and political organization and interaction outside the realm of the State. Apart from the few organized State-controlled churches, Christians are prohibited from practising their religion and are persecuted. People caught practising Christianity are subject to severe punishments in violation of the right to freedom of religion and the prohibition of religious discrimination.

The 36-page report is documented by 354 pages of detailed findings (full text). More background and reactions are reported by CBS News.

Challenges To North Carolina School Vouchers Clear First Hurdle

Yesterday, a North Carolina state trial court refused to dismiss on the pleadings two related lawsuits challenging the state's Opportunity Scholarship Program.  The program will provide school vouchers for use at private schools to some 2400 income eligible families. It was enacted as part of last year's state budget bill.  NC Policy Watch reports on yesterday's ruling from the bench that came after a hearing that lasted more than two hours. The lawsuits, Hart v. North Carolina, (NC Super. Ct., filed 1/13/2014) (full text of complaint) and Richardson v. North Carolina, (NC Super. Ct., filed 1/15/2014) (full text of complaint), claim that the law violates several state constitutional provisions on education, taxation and discrimination. The court scheduled a hearing for Friday on plaintiffs' request to delay implementation of the scholarship program while its constitutionality is being litigated. Institute for Justice has additional information on the lawsuits.

Snake-Handling Pastor Dies From Rattlesnake Bite

On Saturday night, a pastor who starred in the reality TV show Snake Salvation died of a snake bite.  According to USA Today, Rev. Jamie Coots, pastor of the Middlesboro, Kentucky,  snake handling Full Gospel Tabernacle in Jesus Name was bitten by a rattlesnake. An emergency crew came to the church, but Coots had been taken home. When the crew went to Coots's home, the pastor refused treatment. Unlike the 8 previous times Coots had been bitten, this time the bite proved fatal.  Last year, Coots was convicted by a Tennessee court of illegally possessing poisonous snakes. (See prior posting.)

Ugandan President Says He Will Sign Harsh Anti-Homosexuality Bill; U.S. Objects

The Kampala Observer and the New York Times reported yesterday that Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni says he will sign the harsh Anti-Homosexuality Bill (full text- apparently the final version) passed by Uganda's Parliament last December. (See prior posting.) The announcement came in closing remarks at a retreat of Museveni's political party, the National Resistance Movement (NRM). Originally Museveni had reservations about signing the bill, but in his remarks (full text) to the NRM Museveni explained his current decision:

The reason I had not signed the bill is to scientifically answer the question; are there people genetically born homosexual? For me, I had thought that since there were people born albino there could be people born homosexual.

But since the medical authorities, the department of genetics of the Medical School from Makerere, say there is no proof yet that people are homosexual by genetics, I told those scientists to put it in writing and they are going to do so. Then I will sign the bill.

Am taking all these precautions because am historically answerable for whatever I do as a leader. There were mistakes made in the 1930s by Hitler because he wanted to make Germany strong. Some of these issues are very crucial and should be handled objectively not emotionally....

I know we are going to have a big battle with outsiders, but I will be able to say I asked scientists and this is what they said. That homosexuals are normal people behaving abnormally.

In the United States, yesterday President Obama issued a statement (full text) saying that he is "deeply disappointed" by the decision. He added: "enacting this legislation will complicate our valued relationship with Uganda." White House National Security Advisor Susan Rice tweeted yesterday that she had spoken at length with Museveni to urge him not to sign the bill

Recent Articles of Interest

From SSRN:

• Manuel Vargas, The Runeberg Problem: Theism, Libertarianism, and Motivated Reasoning, (in Kevin Timpe & Daniel Speak, eds., Libertarianism and Free Will: the Interplay of Religious Belief and Free Will (Oxford Univ. Press, Forthcoming)).
• Frederick Mark Gedicks, Brief of Amici Curiae Church-State Scholars in Support of the Government in Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. & Conestoga Wood Specialties Corp. v. Sebelius, (January 28, 2014).
• Daniel Austin, How to Reconcile the Establishment Clause and Standing Doctrine in Religious Display Cases with a New Coercion Test, (February 4, 2014).
• Karen Jordan, A Christian Vision of Freedom and Democracy: Neutrality as an Obstacle to Freedom, (February 7, 2014).
• Michael Stokes Paulsen, Kermit Gosnell and Uncle Tom's Cabin, (St. Thomas Journal of Law & Public Policy, 2014, Forthcoming).
• Vivian Grosswald Curran, Reviving Human Rights Legislation After Kiobel, (American Journal of International Law, Vol. 107, p. 858, 2013).
• Neil Siegel, Federalism as a Way Station: Windsor as Exemplar of Doctrine in Motion, (February 14, 2014). 

From SSRN (Legal Issues of Pakistan):

• Shahbaz Ahmad Cheema, Socially Abhorrent But Legally Acceptable: A Study of Alleged Conversions of Sunnis and Shias in Cases of Inheritance in Pakistan, (South Asian Studies, A Research Journal of South Asian Studies, Vol. 29, No. 1, January -July 2014, pp. 281-291).
• Shahbaz Ahmad Cheema, The Federal Shariat Court’s Role to Determine the Scope of ‘Injunctions of Islam’ and Its Implications, (Journal of Islamic State Practices in International Law, Vol. 9, Issue. 2 (2013)).
• Shahbaz Ahmad Cheema & Samee Uzair Khan, Genealogical Analysis of Islamic Law Books Relied on in the Courts of Pakistan, (Al-Adwa December 2013).
• Shahbaz Ahmad Cheema, The Significance of Socio-Political Context in Shaping the Authenticity of Jamaat-I-Islami's Gender Discourse, (Pakistaniaat: A Journal of Pakistan Studies Vol. 5, No. 2 (2013)).
• Shahbaz Ahmad Cheema, An Analysis of Women's Contribution to the Gender Discourse of Jamaat-I-Islami of Pakistan, (Wagadu, Volume 11, 2013).
• Shahbaz Ahmad Cheema, Federal Shariat Court as a Vehicle of Progressive Trends in Islamic Scholarship in Pakistan, (Al-Adwa January-June 2013).

From SSRN (Other Country-Specific Research):

• Milja Radovic, Citizenship and Religion in the Post-Yugoslav States, (CITSEE Working Paper 2013/35 (2013)).
• Elif Bulut & Helen Rose Ebaugh, Religion and Assimilation Among Turkish Muslim Immigrants: Comparing Practicing and Non-Practicing Muslims, (Int. Migration & Integration, 2013, DOI: 10.1007/s12134-013-0301-9).
• Mahmudul Hasan, Communalism in Bangladesh and the Real Spirit of Islam Along with the Legal Mandates for Securing Justice for All, (January 15, 2014).
• Michael Buehler, Subnational Islamization Through Secular Parties: Comparing Shari'a Politics in Two Indonesian Provinces, (Comparative Politics 46.1 (2013): 63-82).
• Shahbaz Ahmad Cheema, Tagore Law Lecturer's Contribution to Islamic Legal Scholarship in British India, (Al-Qalam December 2013).

From SSRN (Islamic Law):

• Septian Bayu Kristanto, Organizational Commitment Differences: Islamic vs. Conventional Banks, (February 15, 2014).
• Sajad Gholami, Mehdi Hariri & Peyman Akbari, Innervation and Moan Review Process, from the Perspective of Law, and Knowledge of Management Accounting, (Scientific Journal of Review (2014) 3(1) 17-22).

Malaysian Court Dismisses Prosecutions Against Shias On Technical Grounds

The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that in Malaysia, Shia Muslims are heartened by the dismissal on technical grounds of a prosecution against 3 men for violating a local fatwa requiring Malaysians to follow Sunni teachings. The fatwa, issued in 2012 by the Perak state fatwa council, is similar to ones adopted in 11 of the country's 14 states after the National Fatwa Council issued a similar ruling in 1996. The 3 men were charged with possessing books and other items relating to Shia Islam, but a Sharia Lower Court judge ruled that two of the charges against the defendants were unclear. Two other Shias were released on similar grounds several weeks ago. However over the last year there have been a growing number of cases against Shias and practitioners of other minority religions.

Recent Prisoner Free Exercise Cases

In Pittman-Bey v. Celum, (5th Cir., Feb. 14, 2014), the 5th Circuit held that defendants in a prisoner lawsuit had qualified immunity because "there is neither controlling authority nor a robust consensus of persuasive authority showing that a Muslim inmate who did not participate in Jumu'ah services was entitled to participate in Ramadan activities and after sunset meals."

In Cauthen v. Rivera, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 16641 (ED CA, Feb. 7, 2014), a California federal magistrate judge recommended that a Rastafarian inmate be permitted to proceed with his complaint that his free exercise and RLUIPA rights were infringed when he was subjected to an unclothed body cavity search in the presence of female staff.

In Pattison v. Nevada, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17109 (D NV, Feb. 11, 2014), a Nevada federal district court refused to reconsider its original imposition of sanctions of $100 on defendants who frivolously removed to federal court (after 2 years of state court litigation) a Jewish inmate's state court complaint that he was being denied kosher meals.

In Wallace v. Miller, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17602 (SD IL, Feb. 12, 2014), an Illinois federal district court adopted a magistrate's recommendations (2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 185068, Aug. 22, 2013) and dismissed many of the claims by an inmate who was an adherent of Satmar Hasidic Judaism who contended that he was deprived of sufficient nutrition in connection with the amount of food he received on religious fast days, as well as claiming retaliation and differential treatment. However the court permitted plaintiff to proceed with a claim against the dietary services manager and the senior chaplain for damages for failure to provide kosher meals, as well as certain claims against other defendants.

In Bucano v. Monroe County Correctional Facility, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17877 (MD PA, Feb. 10, 2014), a Pennsylvania federal district court adopted a magistrate's recommendations (2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17122, Jan. 7, 2014) only in part and allowed an inmate to move ahead against one defendant on her claim that she was forced to eat non-kosher food. The defendant had not moved for dismissal. The remainder of the case was dismissed.

In Johnson v. Martin, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17649 (WD MI, Feb. 12, 2014), a Michigan federal district court adopted in part a magistrate's recommendations (2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 18460, Jan. 14, 2014) and dismissed an inmate's complaint that he was denied Jewish reading material and a kosher diet, concluding that plaintiff failed to show that he has a sincerely held religious belief that requires accommodation.

In Boone v. Coleman, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 18739 (CD IL, Feb. 14, 2014), an Illinois federal district court permitted a Messianic Hebrew inmate to proceed against a correctional officer, but not other defendants, on his complaint that he was denied a kosher diet.

In Marron v. Jabe, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 19150 (ED VA, Feb. 14, 2014), a Virginia federal district court dismissed a Muslim inmate's objections to a prison rule that requires CDs or tapes to be ordered through a single vendor. The policy led to authorities refusing to allow plaintiff to have two religious non-music tapes that he had ordered through a different vendor.

British Court Uses Anti-Social Behavior Orders Against Islamic Radicals

Britain's Crime and Disorder Act 1998, Sec. 1, permits courts to issue an Anti-Social Behavior Order (ASBO) against anyone who has acted "in a manner that caused or was likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress to one or more persons..." Friday's London Mirror and Mail Online report on the innovative use of this power against Islamic radicals in London. Three Muslim men who have been acting as a vigilante Muslim Patrol to enforce Sharia norms in East London received 5-year ASOBs last Friday barring them from making unsolicited approaches to people to promote Sharia law.  The ringleader of the 3, Jordan Horner, also had restrictions placed on him designed to prevent him from preaching extremist Islamic views.  He is prohibited from possessing a bullhorn in any public place, and barred from entering any place of education unless as a student or to visiting relatives. The men are also prohibited from meeting with each other, as well as with a fourth named person or with controversial Islamist Anjem Choudary.

Illegal Kosher Slaughtering Reportedly Continuing In Poland

As previously reported, in Poland a 2012 court decision which Parliament refused to reverse effectively banned kosher and halal slaughter by eliminating an exemption from the requirement that animals be stunned before they are killed.  Previously some $400 million per year of kosher and halal meat exports had benefited the Polish economy.  JTA reported this week, however, that kosher slaughtering is continuing in three Polish slaughterhouses. The firms are certifying to the government that the animals are stunned before slaughter, a representation that is false if the requirements for kosher slaughtering have been met.  Poland's chief rabbi has suspended an aide who was responsible for the misrepresentations, pending an investigation.

Uzbekistan Issues Decree Regulating Religious Materials

Forum 18 (Feb. 12) and Ferghana (Jan. 28) report on a decree issued recently by the government of Uzbekistan that creates a formal legal basis for its restrictions on religious materials.  Supplementing the 1998 Law on Freedom of Religion or Belief (full text of 1998 law .pdf file), the decree titled “Measures to improve order in the production, import and distribution of religious materials,” was signed by the Prime Minister on Jan. 20 and came into formal effect on Jan. 27. It allows distribution of religious materials only at commercial points of sale equipped with cash registers. Advance permission is needed to import religious materials. No more than 3 copies of even approved publications may be imported for personal use.  The production, storage or distribution of materials intended to encourage people to change their beliefs or which "distort religious canons" are prohibited.

Federal District Court Strikes Down Virginia's Ban on Same-Sex Marriages; Delays Injunction To Allow Appeal

Yesterday in Bostic v. Rainey, (ED VA, Feb. 13, 2014), a Virginia federal district court concluded that Virginia's constitutional and statutory provisions that bar same-sex marriage and prohibit recognition of lawful same-sex marriages performed elsewhere are unconstitutional under the due process and equal protection clauses of the 14th Amendment:

The Court is compelled to conclude that Virginia's Marriage Laws unconstitutionally deny Virginia's gay and lesbian citizens the fundamental freedom to choose to marry.  Government interests in perpetuating traditions, shielding state matters from federal interference, and favoring one model of parenting over others must yield to this country's cherished protections that ensure the exercise of the private choices of the individual citizen regarding love and family.

The court began its opinion with a quotation from Mildred Loving, one of the plaintiffs in the 1967 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Loving v. Virginia that struck down Virginia's laws barring interracial marriage and established the modern doctrine of marriage as a "fundamental right." However the court yesterday also stayed the effectiveness of its preliminary injunction to give the parties time to appeal its decision to the 4th Circuit. Washington Post reports on yesterday's decision.

UPDATE: An amended opinion (full text) was issued on Feb. 14 correcting a reference in the first paragraph of Judge Allen's opinion.  The sentence that originally read: "Our Constitution declares that "all men" are created
equal." was corrected to read: "Our Declaration of Independence recognizes that "all men" are created equal." Politico reports on the change. [Thanks to Mirror of Justice for the lead.]

Hawaiian Church Settles Qui Tam Action Charging It With Underpaying School System

AP reports that New Hope churches, one of the original defendants in a Hawaii qui tam whistle blower lawsuit, has agreed to settle for $775,000. However it will not admit wrongdoing as part of the settlement.  As previously reported, in State of Hawaii ex rel. Kahle and Huber v. New Hope International Ministries, (HI Cir. Ct., filed 3/22/2013), relators claim that  churches submitted false records and statements to deprive Hawaii schools of $5.6 million in unpaid or underpaid rent and utility charges for weekend use of school buildings, parking lots and facilities. Under the settlement, $200,000 will go to the relators who are responsible for the suit being filed, with the remainder going to the school system.

New Danish Administrative Regulation Prohibits Kosher and Halal Slaughter Without Prior Stunning of Animal

World Jewish Congress reported yesterday that Denmark's Agriculture and Food Minister has signed a new regulation that takes effect Feb. 17  requiring all animal slaughter to be carried out with prior stunning. Traditionally both kosher and halal slaughter prohibits prior stunning of an animal, and the new regulation was strongly opposed by the Jewish and Muslim communities in Denmark.

Under the new rule, the provision in current Danish regulations that allows an exemption for ritual slaughter that follows elaborate procedures, including stunning immediately after slaughter, will be eliminated. Apparently the regulatory change will have little practical effect at least on the supply of kosher meat, since for the past ten years all kosher meat sold in Denmark has been imported from abroad.

The Food, Agriculture and Fisheries Ministry's website says: "In Denmark all ritual slaughter of animals at slaughterhouses is performed with previous stunning at the moment." JTA reports that according to the president of Denmark's Jewish community, Danish Jews agreed in 1998 to the certification as kosher of meat from cattle that were stunned with non-penetrative captive bolt pistols.  However a Danish rabbi disputes this, saying the agreement probably referred to post-cut stunning, but since no kosher slaughter has taken place in Denmark for at least 10 years, it is unclear. In discussing the new regulation, Agriculture and Food Minister Dan Jørgensen told Danish television: "Animal rights come before religion."

Catholic Bishops In Various Countries At Odds Over Anti-Gay Laws

Religion News Service reported yesterday on "unusually stark and public fissures" among Catholic bishops in various countries over whether to support or oppose harsh anti-gay laws being enacted or revived in some countries of Africa, Asia and elsewhere. For example, after Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan recently signed new anti-gay legislation, the Nigerian Catholic hierarchy  praised the president's "courageous and wise decision."  However, a few days later an editorial in a newspaper run jointly by the bishops of South Africa, Botswana and Swaziland, took a very different view, calling on the Catholic Church in Africa "to stand with the powerless" and "sound the alarm at the advance throughout Africa of draconian legislation aimed at criminalizing homosexuals." Similar disagreements can be seen among bishops in Europe and Asia.

India Supreme Court Orders Stop To Imminent Devadasi Ceremony That Often Exploits Young Girls

The Calcutta Telegraph reports that India's Supreme Court yesterday took quick action in response to a recently filed Public Interest Lawsuit to try to prevent exploitation of young girls in a ceremony scheduled for the night of February 13-14 in front of the Uttangi Durga Hindu temple in the city of Davangere in India's Karnataka state. According to the report:

Under the devadasi system, girls on attaining puberty are married off to the local temple’s female deity at a ceremony willingly consented to by the parents in most cases, though in some cases local panchayats have been known to use a certain degree of coercion.

After being “married” off and “dedicated” to the deity, the girls are forced to sing and dance before their village chiefs, rich landlords and other influential persons and have often been sexually exploited.

The PIL cited newspaper reports that said that despite the Karnataka Devadasis (Prohibition of Dedication) Act, 1982, the practice continued.... The petition alleged that many devadasis, exploited by local landlords and influential men, had been left to fend for themselves and were dying of poverty or sexually transmitted diseases.

The court told counsel for the non-profit foundation filing the suit that they should have come to the court sooner.  As an interim measure, the court yesterday faxed an order to the chief secretary of the state of Karnataka ordering him to take steps to prevent unmarried girls from being forced to become devadasis at the February 13-14 religious event.

Suit By Evangelical Family Challenges Abortion Clinic Buffer Zone

The Thomas More Law Center yesterday announced that it has filed a federal lawsuit challenging a Portland, Maine ordinance that creates a 39-foot buffer zone around reproductive health clinics to prevent protests and counseling on sidewalks near the city's single clinic that provides abortions. The complaint (full text) in Fitzgerald v. City of Portland, (D ME, filed 2/12/2014), alleges that plaintiffs, a family who identify themselves as Evangelicals, have been peacefully praying and counseling women outside the clinic for 16 months, passing out literature and Bible tracts. The ordinance prevents their activities. The suit claims that this is a broad, vague content-based prior restraint on their speech. A suit raising similar legal issues was argued before the U.S. Supreme Court last month. (See prior posting.)

2 Minnesota Catholic Dioceses Sued In Demand For Files of Abusive Priests

In a suit filed in a Minnesota state trial court on Wednesday against two Catholic dioceses, plaintiff who claims to have been abused as a 13-year old boy by Catholic priest James Vincent Fitzgerald is seeking release by the dioceses of the complete files of priests who have been credibly accused of abuse. As reported by Forum News Service, the alleged victim, identified only as "Doe 30", has sued the Diocese of Duluth and the Diocese of New Ulm saying that the abuse occurred in 1976. This is the third suit by various victims against the Diocese of Duluth demanding release of files.  So far the diocese has only released the names (along with basic biographical data) of accused priests. Fitzgerald worked at 6 parishes of the Diocese of Duluth from 1957 to 1983, and worked in the New Ulm diocese from 1977-78. Plaintiff's attorney claims the Duluth Diocese knew of should have known of Fitzgerald's actions and moved him between parishes where he continued to have access to children. The Diocese however says that no abuse complaints against Fitzgerald surfaced prior to late last year.

Milwaukee Archdiocese Files Reorganization Plan; Criticized As Inadequate By Victims

AP reports that the Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee yesterday filed its Plan of Reorganization with federal bankruptcy court. Under the Plan, $4 million will be set aside to compensate 125 clergy sex abuse victims-- the smallest per victim payments yet in any of the 11 bankruptcy reorganizations of dioceses around the country. Over 400 individuals filing claims as victims will not receive payment-- including those beyond the statute of limitations, claimants who already received a settlement from the archdiocese and those abused by priests from religious orders or by parish employees. Also $500,000 will be set aside in a lifetime Therapy Fund for victims.  A Q&A on the Plan of Reorganization posted on the Archdiocese's website gives details on the plan. In a letter posted on the Archdiocese's website, Archbishop Listecki said that the Archdiocese will emerge from bankruptcy with at least $7 million in debt, adding:

The archdiocese has historically operated on a balanced budget, so the burden of paying off this debt will certainly be part of our penance.  I wish we wouldn’t have had to spend the past three years and millions of dollars on attorneys’ fees to get to this point, but now we have a Plan that moves us forward.

Abuse victims strongly criticized the Plan as insufficient, one saying: "It is much like being raped all over again...." The victim advocacy group SNAP issued a statement calling the Plan "breath-taking in its callousness, selfishness and arrogance."