On January 24, 1990, prisoners filed a class action lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against the Colorado Department of Corrections in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado. The plaintiffs alleged that the defendants had violated their constitutional right to religious freedom by ...
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On January 24, 1990, prisoners filed a class action lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against the Colorado Department of Corrections in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado. The plaintiffs alleged that the defendants had violated their constitutional right to religious freedom by failing to: (1) hire an Islamic chaplain, (2) allocate funds for Islamic materials and programs, (3) accommodate Islamic dietary requirements, (4) allocate space for Islamic materials, and by (5) discriminatory transfers of some Islamic inmates.
On May 29, 1992, the parties reached a settlement agreement, which the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado (Judge Richard Matsch) adopted on December 7, 1992. On December 22, 1992, several plaintiffs who did not like the settlement agreement asked the court to reopen the case and enjoin the enforcement of the agreement. On November 24, 1993, the court (Judge Matsch) denied the motion to reopen the case. The plaintiffs appealed.
On April 8, 1994, the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit (Judges James Logan, Oliver Seth, and James Barrett) affirmed the lower court's refusal to reopen the case. Wilson v. Hamilton, 1994 WL 117480 (10th Cir.(Colo.), April 8, 1994).
On March 17, 1999, the plaintiffs again asked the court to reopen the case, and on May 23, 1999, the court (Judge Matsch) again denied the request. We have no further information on the proceedings in this case.
Kristen Sagar - 03/28/2006
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