Supreme Court to Hear Case on Damages for Rastafarian Inmate Over Forced Haircut

Overview

• The justices will hear arguments on November 10 in Damon Landor’s bid to recover money damages after Louisiana guards shaved his knee‑length dreadlocks.
• Landor says officers handcuffed him to a chair and cut his hair after discarding a ruling accommodating religious dreadlocks, although two prior prisons had recognized that accommodation.
• The Department of Justice and an unusual coalition of religious and civil‑liberties groups, including the ACLU and Alliance Defending Freedom, filed briefs supporting Landor.
• Louisiana contends RLUIPA does not permit damages against individual officers and warns of staffing and operational consequences, noting the state has since revised its grooming policy.
• The government argues a damages remedy would not unleash frivolous suits because the Prison Litigation Reform Act and qualified immunity already screen weak claims.