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Court Says Avoiding High Cost Alone Not A Compelling Government Interest Under RLUIPA

By Howard M. Friedman

An Indiana federal district court has decided an important prisoner religious rights case brought as a class action by the ACLU, holding that RLUIPA was violated when an Indiana prison stopped serving kosher meals for cost reasons.  In Willis v. Commissioner, Indiana Department of Corrections, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 116280 (SD IN, Nov. 1, 2010), the facts showed that Indiana prisons had provided both pre-packaged kosher meals and pre-packaged Halal meals (after for a time using higher-cost kosher meals to satisfy requests of both Muslim and Jewish inmates). Costs of pre-packaged meals in total spiraled as the number of Muslim inmates requesting Halal meals increased. In response, the prison system stopped providing any pre-packaged religious meals and instead offered vegan meals prepared on site. But those did not meet strict kosher requirements.  The court held that the Department of Corrections (DOC) had "cited absolutely no relevant authority to support the conclusion that spiraling cost alone is a compelling government interest." The court also concluded that DOC had failed to consider other possible alternatives for serving kosher meals that might be less expensive.

Finally the court held that the lead plaintiff's individual free exercise rights had been violated. While pre-packaged kosher meals were still being served, the prison had a policy of removing from the kosher diet plan any inmate who did not eat 75% of his kosher meals.  Plaintiff did not meet that requirement because breakfasts-- which the prison claimed were kosher-- were not pre-packaged and plaintiff did not eat them because he disagreed that they met kosher standards The court set a hearing for Nov. 30 on the scope of the injunction that should issue.  Chicago Tribune reported on the decision. [Thanks to Joel Katz (Relig. & State in Israel) for the lead.]

Full post as published by Religion Clause on November 07, 2010 (boomark / email).