The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that a former Louisiana inmate whose locs were forcibly cut by prison guards cannot sue for monetary damages, even though the justices acknowledged that his religious rights were violated. In a unanimous decision issued Tuesday, the court sided against Damon Lando r, a devout Rastafarian who argued that prison officials violated federal law when they shaved off his locs during a five-month prison sentence in 2020. The ruling closes the door on Landor’s attempt to recover damages under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA), a federal law Congress passed in 2000 to protect the religious freedoms of people living in institutions such as prisons. Damon Landor is seen with full flowing locs before prison guards shaved his head (right). (Credit: Supreme Court of the United States/NBC) According to court records, Landor had taken a religious vow not to cut his hair. After nearly two decades, his locs had grown to his knees. When he entered Louisiana’s prison system in 2020, he carried a copy of a federal appeals court ruling that specifically protected Rastafarian inmates from having their hair cut. USPS Addresses Fentanyl Exposure Claims After Another Worker Is Allegedly Sent to the ER at Facility Plagued by Four Employee Deaths ‘Make It Home Alive’: Black Teens Say Mall Security, Cops Zeroed In on Them for a Fight They Never Even Saw, and the Video Has People Furious Landor said prison guards ignored the court order, handcuffed him to a chair, and shaved off his locs anyway. After his release, he sued prison officials, arguing they violated his religious rights under RLUIPA. Lower courts dismissed his lawsuit, and the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the law does not allow inmates to seek monetary damages from prison employees. On Tuesday, the Supreme Court agreed. The justices condemned the treatment Landor endured but concluded that Congress did not authorize financial damages under the law. The ruling means inmates can still use RLUIPA to seek court orders stopping religious violations, but they cannot collect money from prison officials after those violations occur. The decision also rejected an argument Landor’s attorneys made based on a separate Supreme Court ruling from 2020. In that case, Muslim men successfully sued the FBI after the government placed them on the no-fly list. The lawsuit was filed under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, a related federal law that protects religious liberty. Landor’s lawyers argued the same reasoning should apply to prison cases. The Supreme Court disagreed. Ironically, the Justice Department sided with Landor. Federal attorneys urged the court to hear the case and argued the issue was important because disputes over inmates’ religious rights arise frequently. Louisiana officials also acknowledged that prison staff should never have cut Landor’s hair. State attorneys told the court that the Department of Corrections changed its policies after the incident to prevent similar violations in the future. Still, they argued that federal law does not allow prison employees to be held personally liable for money damages. Religious organizations representing Christians, Jews, Muslims, Sikhs, and other faith groups had backed Landor’s challenge. They warned that prisons have little incentive to improve policies or protect inmates’ religious rights if officials face no financial consequences for violating the law. Landor’s case drew national attention because of the stark facts surrounding the incident and because Rastafarian locs carry deep religious significance. Rastafari emerged in Jamaica during the 1930s as a religious and political movement among Black people resisting colonial rule. The faith incorporates biblical teachings and views locs as a sacred expression of spiritual commitment. Reggae legends Bob Marley and Peter Tosh helped spread Rastafarian beliefs around the world. Landor’s case is similar to one out of Kentucky a few years ago. In that case, an inmate sued, also under the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, and Kentucky’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Carlos Thurman, a practicing Rastafarian, had his hair forcibly cut under the state corrections department’s search policy rules. While the Supreme Court’s decision ends Landor’s bid for compensation, it leaves intact the court orders and legal protections that prohibit prisons from forcing Rastafarian inmates to cut their hair without a compelling reason. ‘Handcuffed to a Chair’: Supreme Court Agrees Prison Violated Rastafarian Man’s Rights By Forcefully Cutting His Hair, But Says He Can’t Seek Damages ...read more read less