Can You Restrict an Inmate's Religious Rights Based on Security Concerns?

This post is only offered as a discussion topic only and does not represent legal advice. Officers must refer to the laws in their own State as well as their agency's policies, which can be more restrictive on officers that the law requires.

A Police officer is working as a custody officer when inmates on the outside work crew they are overseeing ask to return to the custodial facility to participate in a religious service. Moving these inmates at different times than the rest of the work crew would cause significant security risks including a lack of security to oversee the inmates and the creation of a special group of inmates that would be treated differently than everyone else. If the officer doesn't bring them in for the religious service, is it a violation of their 1st Amendment Right to freely practice their religion? 

This was the issue in the 1987 US Supreme Court Case O’Lone V Estate of Shabazz. In their ruling, the court sided with the prison stating, “Here the District Court decided that the regulations alleged to infringe constitutional rights were reasonably related to legitimate penological objectives. We agree with the District Court, and it necessarily follows that the regulations in question do not offend the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.” 

So, while religious freedoms are still covered under the 1st Amendment, even for inmates and their right to practice, they might not get to observe every religious service due to the security concerns of the facility. 

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