Inmates may not sue prison officials who violate their religious rights, Supreme Court rules
WASHINGTON— Prisoners whose religious rights have been clearly violated by prison guards cannot sue for compensation. Divided Supreme Court ruled Tuesday.
In a 6-3 decision, the justices said the federal law protecting religious freedom allows lawsuits against state prison systems but not against prison employees.
The decision came in the case of a devout Rastafarian in Louisiana. Damon Landor had been growing dreadlocks for almost twenty years. He had three weeks left in his five-month sentence when he was transferred to another prison in Louisiana.
He had with him a copy of a federal appeals court opinion stating that Rastafarian prisoners have a religious right to wear dreadlocks.
Congress in 2000, Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act To protect religious freedom.
But the guards threw out the appeals court decision, and the guards handcuffed Landor to a chair and ordered him to shave his head.
Shortly after his release, Landor sued the guard and the guards for violating a 2000 law known as RLUIPA, which promises “appropriate assistance” to those whose rights have been violated.
But a federal judge, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, and now the Supreme Court dismissed Landor’s case.
Justice Neil M. Gorsuch wrote on behalf of six conservatives.
He explained that when the federal government gives money to states for prisons, education, healthcare and other issues, it can require those states to comply with the law but does not allow private lawsuits against its employees.
“Knowing this is enough to know that the Court of Appeals was right. Mr. Landor does not have a federal RLUIPA cause of action against the officers.” Gorsuch wrote:. “Congress lacks the regulatory authority to impose direct liability on them.”
Three liberals opposed.
“Today’s decision magically transforms a federal law into an invitation to accept or reject, an invitation that is only considered binding if each defendant expressly agrees to be punished,” Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote. Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote. “Inmates like Landor whose religious freedoms are violated in state prisons — no matter how blatant — will often be left helpless.”
Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan agreed.
Civil liberties advocates condemned the decision.
“Our justice system is built on the promise of accountability when rights are violated,” said Rachel Rossi, president of the Justice Alliance. “If there is no remedy for such a violation, there is no justice. This decision will further erode critical civil rights protections for so many people incarcerated in this country.”
Rachel Laser, executive director of American United for Separation of Church and State, said today’s decision “endangers the religious freedom of incarcerated individuals like Damon Landor, who are especially vulnerable to abuse and whose religious practices are placed with undue burdens. Once again, we see a court that backs down on the religious freedom of Christians but allows the government to trample on the religious freedom of non-Christians.”
