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Muslim Police Officer's Religious Discrimination Claim Dismissed

By Howard M. Friedman

In Wallace v. City of Philadelphia, (ED PA, April 26, 2010), a Pennsylvania federal district court held that a Muslim police officer's request to wear his beard longer than permitted by police department policy could not be reasonably accommodated without imposing an undue burden on the city. It therefore dismissed plaintiff's Title VII religious discrimination claim as well as his claim under the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act. Police Department policy permitted officers to wear beards up to one-quarter inch in length for medical or religious reasons. Plaintiff was eventually terminated for refusing to comply with this limitation. The court observed that "to permit employees to mark themselves uniquely in the name of religious accommodation, at the cost of maintaining an employer's neutrality and uniformity, may ask too much." [Thanks to Volokh Conspiracy for the lead.]

Full post as published by Religion Clause on May 12, 2010 (boomark / email).