RLUIPA.org
Lawsuit Forces Georgia Prisons to Accommodate Religion
Jewish Inmates Now Allowed to Wear Yarmulkes in Georgia
On August 3, 2005, Ralph Benning will receive a yarmulke to symbolize his victory for the religious liberties of all Americans. The yarmulke, a small circular cap worn by Jews, was banned in Georgia prisons along with other religious practices and articles of religious clothing. After years of litigation, officials yielded and Mr. Benning can now wear his yarmulke within the walls of the Georgia Department of Corrections.
The apparent turning point for the State was the recent Supreme Court decision in Cutter v. Wilkinson. In Justice Ginsburg’s unanimous decision, the Court upheld Section 3 of the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act ("RLUIPA"), which specially protects the religious exercise of prisoners.
“Today The Becket Fund and Mr. Benning harvest the first fruits of the Cutter legal victory that allows all Americans – both free and incarcerated – to practice and express their religious beliefs,” said Derek Gaubatz, Director of Litigation for The Becket Fund. “After almost 3 years of court battles, Robert Benning will be able to wear a yarmulke, which is utterly harmless, and which is required according to his faith.”
Mr. Benning is an inmate at the Georgia State Prison in Hancock. Jewish by birth, he was raised in a Christian household, but returned to the Jewish faith while in prison. Correctional officials refused to allow him or other Jewish prisoners to wear a yarmulke or keep a kosher diet. Proceeding pro se, Mr. Benning filed a RLUIPA suit against Georgia in 2002. After Georgia challenged the constitutionality of RLUIPA, the Becket Fund joined the case on behalf of Mr. Benning. Since then, RLUIPA’s prisoner provisions have been upheld as constitutional, first by the 11th Circuit in Benning v. Georgia, and more recently by the Supreme Court in Cutter v. Wilkinson.
Although Georgia has relented regarding the yarmulke, the Becket Fund and local counsel King & Spalding are still negotiating to secure kosher meals for Mr. Benning. “The federal system and most state prisons already provide kosher and other religious diets as a matter of course,” explained Derek Gaubatz. “We’re hopeful that Georgia will end its defiance of RLUIPA and step into the mainstream of prison practice.”
The Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy recently published a law review article by Becket Fund Director of Litigation Derek L. Gaubatz entitled "RLUIPA at Four: Evaluating the Success and Constitutionality of RLUIPA’s Prisoner Provisions."