Supreme Court rules ex-inmate can't sue prison officials for shaving dreadlocks

Washington — The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected a former Louisiana inmate's effort to sue state prison officials after they shaved his dreadlocks in violation of his religious beliefs. The high court divided 6 to 3 along ideological lines in ruling against Damon Landor, with the three liberal justices in dissent. Justice Neil Gorsuch authored the opinion for the majority. Landor, who is a devout Rastafarian, sought to sue state and prison officials for violations of the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, or RLUIPA, after prison guards shaved his head. While lower courts condemned Landor's treatment, judges on two different courts dismissed his claims. The Supreme Court's decision upholds the decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit. Landor, Gorsuch wrote, "does not have a federal RLUIPA cause of action against the officers. Under the Spending Clause, Congress lacks regulatory authority to impose liability on them directly and must depend instead on consent. And because they never agreed to answer suits like this one, Mr. Landor's case cannot proceed against them any more than a breach of contract action might proceed against a defendant who never formed a contract." The ruling is a rare loss for a plaintiff arguing violations of his religious rights. …