DeKalb County Jail infringed on Muslim inmates' religious rights and underfed them, lawsuit alleges

Caption

The DeKalb County Jail is one of the biggest east of the Mississippi River, according to the Sheriff's Office.

Credit: Photo from DeKalb County Sheriff's Office.

During the weeks-long observation of Ramadan by Muslims, worshippers across the world participate in daily fasting from dawn to sunset. But in DeKalb County Jail, Muslim inmates observing the Islamic holy month say they were made to subsist on far less food than other inmates.

A lawsuit filed by the Georgia chapter of the Council On American-Islamic Relations alleges the jail failed to provide enough daily calories to Muslim inmates and denied access to meals appropriate for Islamic dietary restrictions. 

Norman Simmonds and other inmates were often served too late in the morning for the predawn meal, called suhoor in Arabic, according to the lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court of Northern District of Georgia. Multiple requests for earlier meals were reportedly ignored by prison staff and the sheriff's office.

Filed on April 18, the lawsuit outlines a "starvation diet" imposed on Simmonds and other Muslim inmates observing the religious customs of Ramadan. Additionally, Simmonds alleges he was denied access to halal (or kosher) meals appropriate for Islamic dietary customs.

The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office declined to comment for this story, citing pending litigation.

Following an emergency motion, the jail agreed last week to serve meals appropriate to Islamic dietary restrictions during Ramadan, while meeting or exceeding federal and state laws, standards and guidelines for nutrition during Ramadan. The meals are to be served around an hour before morning prayer, called Fajr, and approximately 10 minutes before the evening prayer, Maghrib. The agreement came in time for the last days of Ramadan, which ends on the evening of May 1.

Prior to the jail's agreement, the lawsuit alleges, Simmonds often consumed fewer than 1,000 calories a day. That is less than half the amount of calories recommended by federal agency standards, which suggest a daily caloric intake of around 2,600 for adult men.

Though meals are now being served at appropriate times, Javeria Jamil of the Council on American-Islamic Relations said the jail continues to make worship harder for Muslims. The inmates are prohibited access to wall clocks, making it harder for inmates to know when to eat predawn or evening meals. The time is also important for the five prayers Muslims perform at precise times over the course of the day.

While the jail has agreed to announce the times, Jamil said providing access to a wall clock a better solution because inmates will be less reliant on prison staff. 

"There is no reason for why there can't be a wall clock," she said. "We haven't heard a good argument from the jail's end."

The DeKalb County Jail is the county's main housing for pre-trial detention of around 3,800 adult inmates, according to the sheriff's office. The jail admits and releases approximately 40,000 inmates annually.

CAIR Georgia's lawsuit accuses jail officials of violating the Religious Land Use And Institutionalized Persons Act. The law saw use in recent federal court cases concerning the religious accommodation of Muslim inmates in several states. CAIR chapters in Michigan and Alaska successfully argued prisons and jails were required to provide an appropriate Ramadan diet that complied with federal health guidelines for daily caloric content to Muslim inmates.

Despite DeKalb County Jail's agreement to accommodate the Muslim inmates, the case continues. Additionally, Jamil said, there are violations of religious rights in the jail not outlined in the current lawsuit. One example, Jamil said, was the jail's prohibition of prayer rugs.

While she understands the jail's responsibility for staff and inmate safety, Jamil said those concerns can be met while respecting inmates' civil rights.

"I think there there's a balance that can be reached," Jamil said. "And we're hoping that, at least for DeKalb County, we can reach that balance."