8th Circuit: Rules on prisoner’s RLUIPA claims for a succah and other items
Van Wyhe v. Reisch, No. 08-1413 (8th Cir. Sept. 10, 2009)
Excerpts:
Sisney, a SDSP inmate who practices the Jewish faith, brought suit pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and RLUIPA for the violation of his free exercise of religion rights . . . Sisney claimed that the prison officials violated his right to the free exercise of religion under RLUIPA and the First Amendment by denying (among other things not relevant to this appeal) his request to possess and use a succah, his request to have a tape player in his cell to study the Hebrew language, and his request for additional group religious and language study time. Sisney asserted that his religion requires him to celebrate the week-long Jewish festival of Sukkot by eating meals outside in a succah and reciting a special benediction before sundown. A succah is a three-sided booth or tent constructed of a tarp and metal poles [. . .]
In a lengthy opinion, the district court concluded that RLUIPA is constitutional under the Spending Clause and permits only official-capacity suits. The district court concluded that the state had waived its Eleventh Amendment sovereign immunity from suit for monetary damages by accepting federal funds under the terms of RLUIPA and the Civil Rights Remedies Equalization Act of 1986 (CRREA), 42 U.S.C. § 2000d-7, and therefore, the court denied sovereign immunity from monetary damages on the official-capacity RLUIPA claims. But, the district court noted that any monetary relief necessarily would be limited to nominal damages as required by the Prison Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PLRA), 42 U.S.C. § 1997e(e). Injunctive relief was also held to be available on the RLUIPA and the First Amendment official-capacity claims. On the merits of those claims, the district court granted summary judgment on some claims and denied summary judgment on others. Specifically, the court held that Sisney had demonstrated a substantial burden on his free exercise rights regarding the denial of a succah, the denial of additional group religious study time, and the denial of a tape player, but the court concluded that material questions of fact remained on whether Sisney’s beliefs were sincere and whether the denial of these requests was the least restrictive means of furthering the state’s compelling interests [. . .]
We reverse the district court’s denial of summary judgment on the official capacity RLUIPA claims for monetary damages of both Van Wyhe and Sisney based on our conclusions that RLUIPA is constitutional and that the prison officials are entitled to the protection of sovereign immunity from monetary damages. We also reverse the district court’s denial of summary judgment on Sisney’s injunctive relief claims for a tape player and extra group study time under RLUIPA and the First Amendment Free Exercise Clause. We remand for entry of judgment in favor of the prison officials on those claims and for further proceedings; we lack jurisdiction to consider in this appeal Sisney’s claim for a succah and his retaliation claims due to the existence of genuine disputes of material fact.