US Supreme Court rules Muslim inmate can keep beard
The US Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled in favor of a Muslim inmate in the state of Arkansas who wanted to grow a beard in accordance with his beliefs but was barred by prison officials.
The Supreme Court justices, on a 9-0 vote, unanimously ruled that prison inmates in the US were permitted to grow a half-inch (1.3 cm) beard, rejecting Arkansas State’s reasoning that the policy was needed for security reasons.
The prison's "interest in eliminating contraband cannot sustain its refusal to allow petitioner to grow a half-inch beard," Justice Samuel Alito wrote on behalf of the court.
In a handwritten petition, Gregory Holt, also known as Abdul Maalik Muhammad, had asked the justices to take up his case because the "no beard grooming" policy violated his rights to "practice Islam as he believes it is supposed to be practiced by wearing the beard."
Holt argued that the state's prison grooming policy preventing prisoners from having a beard violated his religious rights under a 2000 federal law called the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act.
Holt's lawyers noted that 43 state prison systems and the federal prisons already allow a one-half inch beard.
"What the Supreme Court said today was that government officials cannot impose arbitrary restrictions on religious liberty just because they think government knows best," said Eric Rassbach, Holt's lawyers.
Rassbach is a lawyer for the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, a religious rights legal group that helped represent Holt.
Holt is serving a life sentence for burglary and domestic battery at the Varner high-security state prison in Arkansas.
AHT/GJH
Pro-Gaza protesters in NY's Columbia University stay put despite intimidation, crackdown
Arrest and harassment: US intensifies crackdown on pro-Gaza protests in universities
Assange 'extremely unwell' as Biden says US may drop prosecution
US to pull out troops from Chad in second African state withdrawal
Yemeni armed forces strike British oil tanker in Red Sea
VIDEO | Genocide in Gaza
VIDEO | Press TV's news headlines
VIDEO | American, Israeli rabbis call for ceasefire during protest near Gaza
Iran calls for enhanced defense cooperation with Russia
US campus crackdown: 500 pro-Palestinian protesters arrested
VIDEO | Yemenis rally in Sana'a in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza
This makes it easy to access the Press TV website
