Tonight's weird but true legal case examines the age old question of who is a Jew, albeit from the viewpoint of prison officials. In Jackson v. Mann, 196 F.3d 316 (2d Cir 1999) the Second Circuit Court of Appeals examined a lawsuit brought by an inmate who claimed that he had been deprived of kosher food in violation of (among other things) his 1st Amendment right of Freedom of Religion and his 8th Amendment right to be free of cruel and unusual punishment. What makes this case "weird" is that Jackson was neither born a Jew nor did he undergo a ritual conversion with any Rabbi.
As discussed by the Court in its opinion, Jackson entered the NY State Penal system in 1986 and at that time he identified himself as Jewish and participated in the kosher meal programs at various prisons. In 1995, Jackson was transferred to Shawangunk, where he again listed his religious preference as Jewish and asked to be placed in the kosher diet program so that he could receive kosher meals as part of his religious practice. His request was granted pending a formal determination of his eligibility for the kosher diet program by the prison's Jewish Chaplain, Rabbi Goodman. Rabbi Goodman then told Jackson that he could approve a kosher diet only if Jackson was in fact Jewish. As Jackson was not born Jewish and had not converted, he would not be permitted to enter the program.
Jackson was not willing to accept Rabbi Goodman's answer and
Unwilling to accept the decision of the Rabbi, Jackson filed suit in Federal District Court in 1995. The District Court granted the prison's motion for summary judgment, accepting Rabbi Goodman's discussion on what makes a person Jewish and noting that the prison was properly restricting the kosher food program to inmates who actually are Jewish.
On appeal to the Second Circuit, the Court reversed the grant of summary judgment to the prison. In so doing, the Court explained that in "determining whether a prisoner's particular religious beliefs are entitled to free exercise protection, the relevant inquiry is not whether, as an objective matter, the belief is “accurate or logical.” Instead, the inquiry is “whether the beliefs professed by a [claimant] are sincerely held and whether they are, in his own scheme of things, religious.” The Court further explained that "A claimant need not be a member of a particular organized religious denomination to show sincerity of belief."
Based on this logic, the Court noted that
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As discussed by the Court in its opinion, Jackson entered the NY State Penal system in 1986 and at that time he identified himself as Jewish and participated in the kosher meal programs at various prisons. In 1995, Jackson was transferred to Shawangunk, where he again listed his religious preference as Jewish and asked to be placed in the kosher diet program so that he could receive kosher meals as part of his religious practice. His request was granted pending a formal determination of his eligibility for the kosher diet program by the prison's Jewish Chaplain, Rabbi Goodman. Rabbi Goodman then told Jackson that he could approve a kosher diet only if Jackson was in fact Jewish. As Jackson was not born Jewish and had not converted, he would not be permitted to enter the program.
Jackson was not willing to accept Rabbi Goodman's answer and
claimed that he was Jewish because he read the Torah and ate kosher food. He told Rabbi Goodman that his prison records would confirm his Jewish status. The rabbi gave Jackson a Congregational Questionnaire which asked about his Jewish practices, but Jackson only partially completed it. Jackson later told Rabbi Goodman that he had indeed been born Jewish, but the rabbi was unable to reach Jackson's mother to substantiate this claim and Jackson himself declined to contact his mother for “fear of upsetting her.”
Unwilling to accept the decision of the Rabbi, Jackson filed suit in Federal District Court in 1995. The District Court granted the prison's motion for summary judgment, accepting Rabbi Goodman's discussion on what makes a person Jewish and noting that the prison was properly restricting the kosher food program to inmates who actually are Jewish.
On appeal to the Second Circuit, the Court reversed the grant of summary judgment to the prison. In so doing, the Court explained that in "determining whether a prisoner's particular religious beliefs are entitled to free exercise protection, the relevant inquiry is not whether, as an objective matter, the belief is “accurate or logical.” Instead, the inquiry is “whether the beliefs professed by a [claimant] are sincerely held and whether they are, in his own scheme of things, religious.” The Court further explained that "A claimant need not be a member of a particular organized religious denomination to show sincerity of belief."
Based on this logic, the Court noted that
the district court relied on Rabbi Goodman's statement that “a Jew is one who was born Jewish or has formally converted” to conclude that Jackson is not “in fact Jewish” according to the “practice of the Jewish religion.” This reasoning erroneously substituted the objective “accuracy” of Jackson's assertion that he is Jewish for the correct test-whether Jackson's beliefs are “sincerely held.”Interestingly, the prison officials also challenged the court's ability to determine the issue as a whole, arguing that "the question of Jewish status is an 'ecclesiastical question' beyond the competence of the courts, and is best left to the prison's religious authorities." The Second Circuit did not accept this argument, "because the question whether Jackson's beliefs are entitled to Free Exercise protection turns on whether they are 'sincerely held' not on the “ecclesiastical question” whether he is in fact a Jew under Judaic law.
Viewed through the prism of sincerity, Jackson has produced sufficient evidence to raise a genuine issue of material fact as to whether his religious beliefs are “sincerely held.” He submitted prison documentation that: (1) listed his religious preference as Jewish; (2) showed his participation in kosher meal programs in several other correctional facilities; and (3) showed that he had actually gone without food for several days to avoid eating non-kosher food. He also submitted an affidavit from his mother, in which she stated that she had raised Jackson according to the Jewish faith and dietary laws.
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