Alabama Bill To Eliminate Marriage Licenses Dies In House Judiciary Committee

The Daily Caller reported yesterday that in Alabama SB 377 previously passed by the Alabama state Senate to eliminate marriage licenses died in the House Judiciary Committee last week. As previously reported, the bill which would have replaced issuance of licenses with marriage contracts entered into and recorded by the couple was seen in part as a way of dealing with religious objections by some probate court employees to issuing licenses to same-sex couples. One Republican member of the House Judiciary Committee who voted against the bill explained: "It didn’t make sense to me to make such a sweeping change about how we do marriage, just because of concern about some probate judges in a bit of a spot."

Recent Prisoner Free Exercise Cases

In Howard v. Joyce Meyer Ministries, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 70768 (ED WI, June 1, 2015), a Wisconsin federal district court allowed a Therevedan Buddhist inmate to move ahead with complaints that a picture of Jesus was displayed on the library wall; gift bags containing hygiene products included Bible passages; the TV channel carrying inmate announcements had Christian radio audio; and a religious necklace he ordered was classified as contraband.

In Williams v. Leonard, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 72070 (ND NY, June 4, 2015), a New York federal district court permitted an inmate to move ahead with RLUIPA claims for injunctive relief regarding length of pants and family participation in Eid el-Adha, but dismissed his equal protection and damages claims.

In Anderson v. Olson, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 72595 (WD WI, June 4, 2015), a Wisconsin federal district court dismissed a Nation of Islam inmate's claim that his free exercise rights were infringed when officials threw out his copy of the Qur'an along with other books of his that were over the limit for the number of allowable books, rather than mailing them out to his family. However he was allowed to proceed on his due process claim.

In Furnace v. Gipson, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 72570 (ED CA, June 3, 2015), a California federal magistrate judge recommended permitting an inmate who practiced Shetaut Neter to proceed with his claim that his free exercise rights were infringed when he was unable to change his name or obtain items needed to practice his religion, particularly an ankh, a prayer mat, cleansing oil, and various dried fruits.

In Prim v. Jackson, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 72721 (SD OH, June 4, 2015), an Ohio federal district court adopted a magistrate's recommendation (see prior posting) and permitted a Natsarim (Messianic Jewish) inmate to move to an evidentiary hearing on his request for a preliminary injunction regarding Sabbath services, recognition of plaintiff's religious calendar, sack meals on Friday night for the Sabbath and retaliation for filing grievances.

In Kalican v. Dzurenda, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 72917 (D CT, June 5, 2015), a Connecticut federal district court denied an inmate's motion for rehearing on his complaint that on one occasion he was barred from carrying his kufi to the dining hall in his pocket.

In Amaker v. Goord, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 73133 (WD NY, June 5, 2015), a New York federal magistrate judge held that absent accompanying physical injury, under federal statutory law an inmate cannot recover compensatory damages for denial of access to religious services while in special housing unit.  However the court awarded $1 nominal damages. It also granted plaintiff's request for a specific witness on a separate claim for punitive damages.

In Freeman v. Arpaio, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 71870 (D AZ, June 2, 2015), an Arizona federal district court dismissed with leave to amend using the proper court-approved form an atheist inmate's complaint that the Establishment Clause is violated by patriotic and religious songs that are played every morning and evening on the jail's televisions.

Court's Determination of Church's Voting Membership Upheld

In Fairfield Pentecostal Church v. Johnson, (LA App., June 3, 2015), a Louisiana state appeals court upheld a trial court's decision determining a church's voting membership for purposes of a special vote on whether to dismiss the pastor, saying in part:

The trial court determined at the hearing that none of the members on the original roll had been disfellowshipped; and it allowed another list of members gathered in November 2013 by Reverend Franks, who had kept no roll since his installment in 2010, to be counted toward the membership roll. In order to prevent the solicitation of new members for purposes of litigation, the trial court limited the membership to these two lists. We can think of no more equitable solution. 

Minneapolis Archdiocese Charged Criminally For Inadequate Responses To Priest Abuse

In a 44-page criminal complaint (full text) filed today, the state of Minnesota charged the Catholic Diocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis with contributing to the need for protection or services and contributing to the delinquency or status as a juvenile offender in connection with three separate victims of clergy sexual abuse. A civil complaint was also filed by the state.  As summarized by the Minneapolis Star Tribune:

The charges stem from the archdiocese’s oversight of former priest Curtis Wehmeyer, who is now serving a prison term for abusing two boys while he was pastor of Blessed Sacrament Church in St. Paul.

At a press conference, Ramsey County Attorney John Choi said:

Today we are alleging a disturbing institutional and systemic pattern of behavior committed by the highest levels of leadership of the archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis over the course of decades.

By filing criminal charges and taking civil action, we are holding the archdiocese accountable for its failure to responsibly and meaningfully respond to numerous and repeated reports of troubling conduct by Curtis Wehmeyer.

The New York Times also reported on the filing of the six misdemeanor charges, each of which carries a maximum fine of $3000. By filing charges only against the Archdiocese, and not against individuals, the possibility of imposing the 1 year prison sentence that is also available on each charge disappears.

UPDATE: Here is an audio recording of the news conference in which the County Attorney announced the criminal charges. According to MPR News, he said that the investigation continues, but as of now prosecutors do not have sufficient evidence to charge any individual church officials criminally. [Thanks to Tom Rutledge for the update lead.]

Guam's Same-Sex Marriage Ban Struck Down

Pacific Daily News reports that in a ruling from the bench, Guam's chief federal judge this morning struck down the island's ban on same-sex marriage.  A written opinion is expected on Monday. Guam, a U.S. territory, is part of the 9th Circuit which has already held same-sex marriage bans unconstitutional. (See prior posting.) Guam is the last jurisdiction in the 9th Circuit to have its ban invalidated.

UPDATE: The full opinion in Aguero v. Calvo, (D Guam, June 8, 2015) is now available.

Nevada Enacts Expansive School Choice Legislation

As reported by the Las Vegas Review Journal, on Tuesday, Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval signed SB 302 (full text) creating an extensive school choice program. The legislature gave final passage to the bill last week.  Under the bill, the parents of a child who has attended public school for 100 consecutive days may move the child to a private school (including a religious school), a tutoring facility or to home schooling and have the state pay into an educational savings account for the student an amount equal to 90% (or 100% for low-income and disabled) of the statewide average basic support per pupil. Currently 100% of the statewide average is about $5700.  The funds may be used for tuition, fees, textbooks, tutoring, testing and transportation.  A student may also be moved part-time to another educational facility and spend part-time in public school, receiving a partial grant. The Reno Gazette Journal has more details of the legislation. Payments under the new law will start Jan. 1, 2016.

Opponents of the legislation argued in part that the bill is unconstitutional because it allows taxpayer money to be spent on religiously-oriented private schools. The Nevada Constitution, Art. 11, Sec. 10, provides: "No public funds of any kind or character whatever, State, County or Municipal, shall be used for sectarian purpose."

9th Circuit: State AG Can Require Disclosure of IRS Form 990 List of Donors

In a decision handed down early last month, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld California's requirement that in order to solicit tax deductible contributions in the state, a charity or other non-profit must file an annual report that includes an unredacted IRS Form 990 Schedule B, the names and contributions of significant donors.  In Center for Competitive Politics v. Harris, (9th Cir., May 1, 2015), the court held that the organization challenging the requriement had not shown that its donors would experience threats or harassment because of the disclosure requirement.  It also rejected the argument that Congress had intended to protect the privacy of Schedule B information. BNA Daily Report for Executives (subscription required) reported on the decision this week.

7th Circuit Keeps RLUIPA Suit Against Chicago Alive

In World Outreach Conference v. City of Chicago, (7th Cir., June 1, 2015), the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals breathed new life into a RLUIPA case that has been in litigation for 9 years. The court reversed the district court's grant of summary judgment to the city of Chicago as to claims against the city for damages because of delays in granting licenses to World Outreach so it could operate a former YMCA building for its religious purposes. World Outreach argued it lost some $591,000 that it could have made by housing Hurricane Katrina evacuees in the building. The court's opinion by Judge Posner included comments about the power of aldermen in Chicago politics.  Judge Cudahy concurred with one of the shortest and most cryptic opinions ever:

Unfortunately; and I think the opinion must be stamped with a large “MAYBE.”

(See prior related posting.) RLUIPA Defense blog reports on the decision.

Connecticut Legislature Makes Religious Exemption From Vaccination Requirements Marginally More Difficult

On Tuesday, the Connecticut General Assembly gave final passage to HB 6949 (full text) and sent it to the governor for his signature.  The bill places additional procedural requirements on parents seeking to exempt their children on religious grounds from vaccination requirements.  As reported by WNPR:

Currently, [parents or guardians] must simply present a statement that the immunization would be contrary to the child's religious beliefs. But under the bill which cleared the Senate Tuesday, such statements must be submitted annually and officially "acknowledged" by a notary public, attorney, judge, family support magistrate, court clerk, deputy clerk or justice of the peace.

However another bill pending in the legislature would, if enacted, require the notarized statements be submitted only when the child enters kindergarten and when he or she enters 7th grade.

European Court Holds Hearing On Alevis' Complaint Against Turkey

The Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights yesterday held a hearing in Doğan and Others v. Turkey. (Webcast of full hearing with English simultaneous translation.) The case, brought by members of Turkey's Alevi community, involves claims of unequal treatment. Daily Sabah, reporting on the hearing, provides more background:

Applicants to the court requested the state provide the same status to cemevis as mosques and offer free public services. Several Alevi citizens had filed a lawsuit against the Prime Ministry in 2005 after their request for cemevis to be granted a new status was rejected. They then took their case to the European Court of Human Rights in 2010. They claim Turkish authorities violated the European Convention on Human Rights concerning freedom of religion and thought and its ban on discrimination. An Alevi foundation had asked the government to implement regulations that would enable the bills of cemevis to be paid through a fund administered by the Presidency of Religious Affairs (DİB) that oversees the operation of mosques. Turkish courts had dismissed the foundation's application, basing their decision on the directorate's opinion that cemevis are not places of worship, but rather places of assembly in which spiritual ceremonies are held.

U.S.-Based Sikh Group Sues Facebook Over Takedown of Its Page In India

The U.S. based advocacy group Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) this week filed a federal lawsuit against Facebook, Inc. complaining that Facebook has blocked access throughout the country of India to SFJ's Facebook page.  The complaint (full text) in Sikhs For Justice"SFJ", Inc. v. Facebook, Inc., (ND CA, filed 6/2/2015), contends that Facebook is subject to the public accommodation provisions of the federal 1964 Civil Rights Act and California's Unruh Civil Rights Act.  It alleges that Facebook collaborated with the government of India in retaliating against SFJ for its online campaign against  forced conversion of Christians, Muslims and Sikhs to Hinduism; support for a referendum in Punjab for an independent Sikh country; and amendment of the Indian constitution's provision that labels Sikhs as Hindus. The complaint alleges further:

Defendant willfully, intentionally, purposefully, knowingly, recklessly, and/or negligently deprived Plaintiff and its members in the entire India of the full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, and accommodations of Defendant’s internet-based social networking service as a place of public accommodation, as defined in 42 USC Section 2000a.

... Defendant did so deprive Plaintiff and its members with discrimination and segregation on the ground of race, religion, ancestry, and national origin.

Times of India reports on the lawsuit.

California School District Settles Allowing Native American Graduate To Wear Eagle Feather

California's Clovis Unified School District reached a settlement yesterday with Christian Titman, a Native American high school senior who had filed suit two days earlier to force the school district to allow him to wear  an eagle feather during graduation ceremonies today.  (ACLU press release.) Titman argued that the refusal to allow him to honor his Native American heritage and family in this way violated his free speech and religious exercise rights.  (Full text of complaint in Titman v. Clovis Unified School District, CA Super. Ct., filed 6/1/2015.)  The settlement agreement (full text) provides in part:

Christian Titman will be permitted to ... wear the agreed upon prepared eagle feather ... in his hair during the graduation ceremony; and ... upon receipt of his diploma ... is permitted to adorn his graduation cap with the agreed upon eagle feather, and to participate in the tassel turn with the eagle feather connected to his tassel....

Under the agreement, the school will issue a statement indicating that while it remains committed to its tradition of decorum at graduation, it is also committed to working with students and families on accommodations for sincerely held religious beliefs.

More Legal Maneuvering Against Same-Sex Marriage In Alabama As U.S. Supreme Court's Decision Nears

With the U.S. Supreme Court less than a month away from finally settling the issue, legal sparring over same-sex marriage continues in Alabama. Two groups that had secured from the Alabama Supreme Court a writ of mandamus ordering Probate Court judges around the state to discontinue the issuance of marriage licenses to same-sex couples (see prior posting) filed a "Motion for Clarification and Reaffirmation of the Court's Orders Upholding and Enforcing Alabama's Marriage Laws".  The motion and supporting memorandum of law (full text) in Ex parte State of Alabama ex rel. Alabama Policy Institute, (AL Sup. Ct., filed 6/2/2015), asked the state Supreme Court to reaffirm its order in light of intervening U.S. federal district court decisions (see prior posting) granting a preliminary injunction (which the district court then stayed pending the U.S. Supreme Court's upcoming decision) barring all Alabama probate judges from refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Liberty Counsel issued a press release announcing the filing of the motion which said in part: "The Alabama Supreme Court’s prior mandamus Order, and perhaps its disposition of this motion, should send a message that any ruling by Judge Granade or even the United States Supreme Court inventing a right to same-sex 'marriage'a under the U.S. Constitution is illegitimate."

Court Allows Student Distribution of Gospel Tracts

In Leal v. Everett Public Schools, (WD WA, May 29, 2015), a Washington federal district court entered an order (full text) expunging the suspensions of high school senior Michael Leal who has been disciplined for insisting on handing out gospel tracts to fellow students.  The court also held that the portion of Everett Public Schools' policies that allow a student to hand out literature only if it is written or produced by the student violates Leal's free speech rights.  However, the court permitted the school to limit the locations and times at which Leal can hand out literature, and limit his preaching to a free speech area.  The court spelled out the reasons for its order in a ruling from the bench. King5 News reports on the decision as does a press release from Pacific Justice Institute.

Oregon Tax Court Says Rectory Not Tax-Exempt

In St. Mary Star of the Sea Catholic Church, Astoria v. Clatsop County Assessor, (OR Tax Ct., May 6, 2015), an Oregon Tax Court magistrate held that a residential structure located 1.5 miles from the church used as a church rectory did not qualify for a property tax exemption "because the evidence shows the rectory is not reasonably necessary to carry out the religious aims of the church..."  The court said in part:

Although [the parish priest] does write sermons and homilies at the rectory, those duties do not require close physical proximity to the church.... The other uses of the rectory have no direct connection to the church; they certainly do not require a rectory in close proximity to the church. There was generalized testimony about the availability of guest bedrooms for visiting priests, deacons, and seminarians, but no specific testimony or other evidence that such officials have stayed at the subject property and, if so, how many and how often they were there....

Forbes reports on the decision.

Cert Petition Filed In Family Dispute Over Repatriation of Athlete Jim Thorpe's Remains To Tribal Cemetery

Yesterday a petition for certiorari (full text) was filed with the U.S. Supreme Court in Sac and Fox Nation of Oklahoma v. Borough of Jim Thorpe.  In the case, the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals in a 2014 decision (full text) held that despite its literal language, Congress did not intend the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) to apply to a dispute between the sons of famous Native American Athlete Jim Thorpe who died in 1953 and the Pennsylvania town that renamed itself after Thorpe in an agreement with Thorpe's widow (his third wife) to have his remains buried there. Some of Thorpe's children from prior marriages have insisted that his remains be moved to Sac and Fox tribal land in Oklahoma. Wall Street Journal's Law Blog reports on the cert. petition.

Church Sues To Enforce Bequest

The Tampa Bay Times reported yesterday on a lawsuit filed by Christ the King Catholic Church, one of the Tampa, Florida area's most prominent churches, against Teresa "Terri" Gaffney, a lawyer who is prominent in the Hillsborough County Republican Party.  The church says that Gaffney's father John J. Gaffney who died in 2011 had directed in his will that his house be sold, the proceeds used to pay any remaining expenses for his care, and the remainder be distributed to the Church.  But instead, Theresa Gaffney transferred the house to her daughter.  Gaffney says the house was never willed to the Church, and that the Church is suing her because her children have been raised in the Jewish faith of her husband. The house is valued at $344,000.

Michigan Supreme Court Dismisses Chabad Property Dispute On Statute of Limitations Grounds

In Chabad-Lubavitch of Michigan v. Schuchman, (MI Sup. Ct., May 20, 2015), the Michigan Supreme Court in a brief opinion reversed the state court of appeals in a dispute between Chabad-Lubavitch of Michigan and a local Chabad organization over ownership of a Chabad center in West Bloomfield. The parent organization claimed that the property should have been titled in its name. In the case, the appeals court had rejected defendants' statute of limitations defense, holding that the statute was equitably tolled during the time that the parties were engaged in Chabad's mandatory ecclesiastical dispute resolution process. (See prior posting.)  Reversing, the Michigan Supreme Court said "there are no grounds on which to equitably toll the statute of limitations."

27 Members of Congress Urge New AG To Help Strengthen Anti-Profiling Ban

Yesterday 27 members of Congress sent a letter (full text) to U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch urging stronger limits on religious and ethnic profiling than are set out in December 2014 guidelines issued by her predecessor Eric Holder. While the 2014 guidelines for the first time extended anti-profiling restrictions to national origin, gender, gender identity, religion, and sexual orientation (see prior posting), yesterday's letter pointed out a number of weaknesses in those guidelines: they are only advisory and do not offer victims any remedy; they still permit surveillance in order to map and infiltrate Muslim communities based on religious identity; and they do not cover profiling at airports, borders or by state and local officials.  The letter urged Lynch to work with Congress to adopt a comprehensive federal anti-profiling program. [Thanks to Glenn Katon for the lead.]

USCIRF Condemns Sudan's Prosecution of 2 Pastors

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom issued a press release yesterday condemning the government of Sudan for its continuing prosecution of two Christian clergymen on "baseless charges of undermining Sudan’s constitution and waging war against the state"-- crimes which carry a possible death penalty or life in prison.  USCIRF says:

Revs. [Yat] Michael and [Peter] Reith, both of South Sudanese origin, belong to the Presbyterian Evangelical Church Khartoum Bahri congregation.  The congregation has brought a legal case against Sudanese authorities to stop the illegal sale of church land by Sudanese authorities to a Muslim businessman.  The National Intelligence Security Services (NISS) detained Rev. Michael in December 2014, after recording him urging parishioners at a church service to continue standing firm through the trials they were experiencing.  The same month, authorities partially destroyed the church and arrested 37 congregants.  Rev. Reith was detained in January 2015.  Both pastors were held at an undisclosed location and were not granted access to lawyers and family until March 1.

The defendants are also charged with insulting  religious beliefs, breach of the public peace, arousing feelings of discontent among the regular forces and disclosure of official information.