Second Amendment Archives - LAW AND RELIGION FORUM

Here are some important law-and-religion news stories from around the web:

The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments in Singh v. Berger. In the case, the D.C. federal district court refused to grant a preliminary injunction to three Sikh Marine recruits who wanted to prevent enforcement of the Marine’s uniform and grooming policies during recruit training while their case continues to be litigated.
In Hardaway v. Nigrelli, a New York federal district court issued a temporary restraining order barring enforcement of the provision in New York law that prohibits possession of firearms at “any place of worship or religious observation.” The suit was filed by two clergy members who allege that, as leaders of their churches, they want to carry firearms on church premises to keep the peace. The court concluded that the state restriction violates the Second Amendment.
Suit was filed in a Wisconsin federal district court challenging the city of La Crosse’s ordinance prohibiting medical and mental health professionals from engaging in conversion therapy with anyone under eighteen. The complaint in Buchman v. City of Law Crosse alleges that the ban on counseling minors to change their sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or behaviors violates Plaintiff’s free speech and free exercise rights.
Suit was filed in a California federal district court by two California State University professors challenging the University’s inclusion of discrimination on the basis of caste in its Interim Antidiscrimination Policy adopted in January. The complaint in Kumar v. Koester alleges that the term “caste,” as used in the Interim Policy, is unconstitutionally vague and the Interim Policy violates the rights of Plaintiffs under the First and Fourteenth Amendments.
In a tentative decision, a California state trial court concluded that a bakery that refuses on religious grounds to furnish custom-designed cakes for same-sex weddings and instead refers customers to another bakery for such items does not violate the Unruh Civil Rights Act. In Department of Fair Employment and Housing v. Cathy’s Creations, Inc., the court held that because California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act is a neutral law of general applicability, the state did not violate Defendant’s free exercise rights.
In L.F. v. S.C.R.L., the Court of Justice of the European Communities held that a private company may prohibit employees from wearing all visible signs of political, philosophical, or religious belief in the workplace. This would not constitute direct discrimination on the ground of religion or belief in violation of Council Directive 2000/78 so long as the company’s policy covers any manifestation of religious, philosophical, or spiritual beliefs without distinction.

It can’t possibly top Mark’s Pussy Riot post, but here’s an unusual case out of the Eleventh Circuit. In 2010, the state of Georgia passed a statute prohibiting the carrying of weapons or “long guns” in certain public venues. One of these eight designated locations in this Carry Law was a “place of worship.” Two individual plaintiffs claim that they “regularly attend religious services, possess a weapons carry license, and ‘would like to carry a handgun’ while in a place of worship.” The complaint alleges violations of the Free Exercise Clause and the Second Amendment.

The Eleventh Circuit tossed the case. “The Supreme Court has reiterated time and time again that personal preferences and secular beliefs do not warrant the protection of the Free Exercise Clause,” it said. The Court held that it had searched the complaint for any allegation that the Carry Law violated a sincerely held religious belief of the plaintiffs, but to no avail. “That Plaintiffs ‘would like’ to carry a firearm in order to be able to act in ‘self-defense’ is a personal preference, motivated by a secular purpose . . . . [T]here is no First Amendment protection for personal preferences; nor is there protection for secular beliefs.”

The Second Amendment claim was also dismissed. The case is Georgiacarry.org, Inc. v. Georgia, 2012 WL 2947817 (11th Cir. July 20, 2012).