18. Food.

U.S. Appeals Court RELIGIOUS DIET

Beerheide v. Suthers, 286 F.3d 1179 (10th Cir. 2002). Three state prisoners who were Orthodox Jews brought a [section] 1983 action against prison officials based on the officials' failure to provide them with free kosher meals. The district court granted a permanent injunction and the officials appealed. The appeals court affirmed, finding that failure to provide free kosher meals violated the First Amendment, and that a proposal under which the prisoners would be required to make a 25% co-payment for the cost of providing such meals was not rationally related to the legitimate penological concerns of cost and abuse. The court also found that the officials' alternative proposals that the prisoners buy their kosher meals at the prison canteen, or have the Jewish community provide the meals, were not reasonable. (Freemont Correctional Facility, Colorado)

U.S. District Court FOOD

Carlyle v. Aubrey, 189 F.Supp.2d 660 (W.D.Ky. 2001). A former prisoner brought a [section] 1983 action against a county jail alleging Eighth Amendment violations. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the defendants. The court held that the prisoner was not subjected to unconstitutional conditions of confinement, even though water service in his cell was broken, he was forced to sleep on the floor, and he was fed only a bologna sandwich. The prisoner had admitted that he was offered drinking water on at least two occasions and that officers brought in water to flush the toilet. The court noted that although forcing a prisoner to sleep on the floor for extended periods may amount to an Eighth Amendment violation, the temporary inconvenience of one night spent on the floor does not. (Jefferson County Jail, Kentucky)

U.S. Appeals Court RELIGIOUS DIET

Love v. McCown, 38 Fed.Appx. 355 (8th Cir. 2002). A state prison inmate brought a [section] 1983 action seeking to compel corrections officials to provide him with a kosher diet. The district court granted preliminary injunctive relief and ordered prison officials to deposit $15 weekly deposits into the inmate's prison account for use in purchasing kosher food items. The appeals court upheld the preliminary injunction, noting it was prospective in nature, under the provisions of the First Amendment and the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA). (East Arkansas Regional Unit, Arkansas Department of Corrections)