fbpx

Inmates’ rights were violated on kosher meals, judge rules

The Indiana Department of Corrections violated federal law when it substituted vegan meals for kosher for its inmates, a federal judge ruled.
[additional-authors]
November 8, 2010

The Indiana Department of Corrections violated federal law when it substituted vegan meals for kosher for its inmates, a federal judge ruled.

U.S. District Court Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson made the ruling last week in Indianapolis in response to a class-action suit filed last year against the department by Matson Willis, an Orthodox Jewish inmate at the Miami Correctional Facility.

The meals reportedly were changed in order to cut costs. The judge said the change violated the religious rights of Willis.

Some 90 to 120 inmates were affected by the change, according to the American Civil Liberties Union.

A hearing set for Nov. 30 will decide what actions the department must take going forward.

Did you enjoy this article?
You'll love our roundtable.

Editor's Picks

A Night of Gratitude Honoring Dennis Prager

Latest Articles

From Atop the Pulpit

New opportunities and challenges have always come and gone. But pulpit clergy with their years of training, education and perspective on life, generated from atop the pulpit, are especially well suited for whatever lies ahead.

A Different Kind of Tower

The Tower of Babel reminds us how easily language can divide us. Our shared history reminds us of what becomes possible when we find ways to understand one another.

Paris on Fire, America on Edge and the Generation of the Flood

What is especially troubling to me is that at many of these protests in France you will find signs reading “Intifada Revolution” and “From the River to the Sea, Palestine Will Be Arab,” along with ubiquitous Palestinian flags, and Hamas flags too.

Torah Portion: Lech Lecha

In this parsha, we meet the first hire — employee #1 — of Jew, Inc. a new God-created enterprise that will change everything.

“What is Life Worth?”

Determine how much a man’s life – and death – are WORTH? The man who did this for the 9/11 families!

The Missing Years

The question is not only which campus will be safe for our children. It is who our children will be when they arrive.

Whatever Happens, We’re Here to Stay

Zionism, to me, begins with a decision: to stay and refuse to give up – even when election results disappoint us, even when the government pursues a course we fiercely oppose.

Who Is Your Provider?

When TV was free, somehow there was always something to watch. It was a very Norman Rockwell experience. The whole family would gather in the living room. The dog was asleep on the woven rug.

Obama’s Turn on Israel

The fact that he thinks such a once-radical message will be accepted by the American people speaks volumes as to the challenges that the winner of next week’s Israeli elections will face in the court of American public opinion.

More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.