Filed Date: April 8, 1986
Closed Date: Feb. 27, 1989
Clearinghouse coding complete
Plaintiff, a prisoner at the Georgia State Prison and a member of the Nation of Islam, filed a pro se suit under section 1983 alleging violations of his First and Fourteenth Amendment rights against prison officials. He claimed that the religious beliefs of the Muslim prisoners were being violated by the prison not making "reasonable arrangements" for the provision of Nation of Islam ministers as required by a consent decree entered in Guthrie v. Evans, No. 3068 (S.D. Ga. 1978) (PC-GA-006).
The magistrate recommended that the case be treated as a contempt petition, and, because the district court in Guthrie had ordered that contempt petitions be filed only through class counsel, recommended it be dismissed. The district court adopted the magistrate's recommendations, and the plaintiff appealed to the Eleventh Circuit court of Appeals. The Eleventh Circuit (Judge Thomas Clark), relying on Diaab v. Green, 794 F.2d 685 (11th Cir. 1985), first made clear that the magistrate was incorrect in finding that the claim was not cognizable in federal courts. Saleem v. Evans, 866 F.2d 1313 (11th Cir. 1989). That case provided that there was a valid claim of a constitutional violation based on the different beliefs between the Muslim sects for which relief could be obtained in the absence of a legitimate penalogical explanation for the violation by the prison officials. Nevertheless, the court affirmed the district court's dismissal of the complaint because the Guthrie consent decree required contempt petitions to be filed through class counsel and ordered a copy of the complaint be sent to counsel in the Guthrie case.
The docket for this case is not available on PACER, and therefore our information ends with the February 27, 1989 court opinion.
Summary Authors
Sherrie Waldrup (10/21/2005)
Clark, Charles (Mississippi)
Cox, Emmett Ripley (Alabama)
Edmondson, James Larry (Georgia)
Hewitt, William Davis (Georgia)
Childers, Neal B. (Georgia)
Clark, Charles (Mississippi)
Cox, Emmett Ripley (Alabama)
Edmondson, James Larry (Georgia)
Last updated Feb. 15, 2024, 3 a.m.
Docket sheet not available via the Clearinghouse.State / Territory: Georgia
Case Type(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: April 8, 1986
Closing Date: Feb. 27, 1989
Case Ongoing: No
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
Muslim prisoner alleging violation of religious rights due to fact that only Muslim minister was from another sect
Plaintiff Type(s):
Public Interest Lawyer: Unknown
Filed Pro Se: Yes
Class Action Sought: Yes
Class Action Outcome: Granted
Defendants
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Constitutional Clause(s):
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff
Nature of Relief:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Form of Settlement:
Court Approved Settlement or Consent Decree
Order Duration: 1978 - 1989
Issues
General:
Discrimination-basis:
Type of Facility: