O'Lone v. Estate of Shabazz

O'Lone v. Estate of Shabazz, 482 U.S. 342 (1987), was a U.S. Supreme Court decision involving the constitutionality of prison regulations. The court ruled that it was not a violation of the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment to deprive an inmate of attending a religious service for "legitimate penological interests."

O'Lone v. Estate Of Shabazz
Argued March 24, 1987
Decided June 9, 1987
Full case nameO'Lone, Administrator, Leesburg Prison Complex, et al. v. Estate of Shabazz, et al.
Docket no.85-1722
Citations482 U.S. 342 (more)
107 S. Ct. 2400; 96 L. Ed. 2d 282; 1987 U.S. LEXIS 2604
Holding
The Court of Appeals erred in placing the burden on prison officials to disprove the availability of alternative methods of accommodating prisoners' religious rights. That approach fails to reflect the respect and deference the Constitution allows for the judgment of prison administrators.
Court membership
Chief Justice
William Rehnquist
Associate Justices
William J. Brennan Jr. · Byron White
Thurgood Marshall · Harry Blackmun
Lewis F. Powell Jr. · John P. Stevens
Sandra Day O'Connor · Antonin Scalia
Case opinions
MajorityRehnquist, joined by White, Powell, O'Connor, Scalia
DissentBrennan, joined by Marshall, Blackmun, Stevens
Laws applied
U.S. Const. amend. I

Further reading

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  • Rachanow, Shelly S. (1998). "The Effect of O'Lone v. Estate of Shabazz on the Free Exercise Rights of Prisoners". Journal of Church & State. 40: 125–148. doi:10.1093/jcs/40.1.125. ISSN 0021-969X.
  • Rigoli, L. M. (1990). ""Power Exercised in the Shadows": O'Lone v. Shabazz as a Signal to the Court's Return to Interpretivism in Institutional Reform Litigation". New England Journal on Crime and Civil Confinement. 16: 141.

See also

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