On April 3, 2008, two Muslim prisoners incarcerated in the Wyoming State Penitentary (WSP) sued officials of the Wyoming Department of Corrections in the United State District court of Wyoming. Plaintiffs claimed violations of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000cc et seq. (RLUIPA). Specifically, plaintiffs claimed that a prison policy requiring prisoners to consume their meals within twenty (20) minutes substantially burdens their ability to practice their religion, as they must choose between eating their meals and praying. The complaint specified that Jewish inmates experienced similar difficulties.

After brief litigation, the parties entered a Consent Decree which was approved by the court (Judge Clarence A. Brimmer) on November 19, 2008. The Consent Decree permits prisoners who receive their meals in their cells or pods to take up to thirty (30) minutes to eat, and prisoners receiving religious meals may keep those meals in their cells until the next meal is served. Prisoners who eat in the dining hall are permitted to go to the front of the line and receive a 10-and 5-minute announcements before being escorted from the hall.

Additional provisions in the Consent Decree substantially change the defendants' policies and practices concerning the observance by Muslims of fasting, special meals, and prayer time, and also guaranteed that a second microwave would be installed, from which pork products would be banned.

The consent decree did not establish an expiration date. As of March 2018, there had been no further litigation.

Denise Heberle - 07/13/2010
Alex Colbert-Taylor - 07/09/2013


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