Justice in a Tangle: The Case of Damon Landor and His Dreadlocks

Damon Landor, a Rastafarian, found himself in a tough spot when prison officials shaved his long hair during a 2020 stint for a drug-related offense. His faith forbids haircuts, and he had grown his hair nearly to his knees over two decades. Despite showing prison staff a federal court ruling that protected his religious rights, they proceeded to shave his head. The legal battle that followed is complex. Landor is suing individual prison officials for violating his rights under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA). This act was Congress's attempt to restore religious freedoms after the Supreme Court limited them in the 1990s. However, the Court later weakened this act in a case called City of Boerne v. Flores. The Supreme Court's history on religious freedom is messy. In the 1960s, they protected a worker's right to refuse Saturday work for religious reasons. But in 1990, they ruled that laws must be followed regardless of religious beliefs, as long as they apply to everyone equally. This change led Congress to pass RLUIPA, which the Court later limited. Landor's case hinges on whether Congress can require states to compensate prisoners whose religious rights are violated. Lower courts have ruled against this idea, stating that prison officials aren't part of the agreement between states and the federal government. Landor's lawyers argue that officials choose to work for a state that accepts federal funds and thus should follow the rules. The Supreme Court's current leanings favor religious rights, especially for conservative Christians. They might side with Landor, but the legal path is tangled. Overruling past decisions could simplify things, but that's a big step.