June 28, 2003

Indiana Decisions - 7th Circuit issues three

The federal Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit has issued rulings in three Indiana cases. As reported here in this morning's Indianapolis Star:

Lafayette may not ban a convicted sex offender from its parks because of his immoral thoughts, a divided federal appeals court ruled Friday. The Lafayette Parks Department had permanently barred the former inmate after discovering he had visited a park in January 2000 and thought about having sexual contact with children playing.

The Indiana Civil Liberties Union filed suit in District Court in Hammond on his behalf. The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago reversed a district judge's decision and found that the ban violated the First Amendment.

"Presumably, untold numbers of Lafayette residents wander the city's parks every day, many of them potentially thinking offensive or objectionable thoughts," Judge Ann Claire Williams wrote. "(He) may not be punished for merely thinking perverted thoughts about children."

Access the opinion, John Doe v. City of Lafayette Indiana, here.

The two other decisions involve questions of discrimination against individuals because of their religious beliefs. The first, Benjamin Endris v. Indiana State Police, concerns a former state trooper who was was dismissed after refusing to work on a riverboat casino because of his religious beliefs. Access it here.

The second involves a woman who, according to the Star story: "had to remove her head wrap, called a geles. If she failed to do so, she was told, she would be written up for insubordination for violating the dress code." The case is Holmes, Patricia v. Marion County Office of Public Welfare (02-1377). A request to the docket reports "It is not in the system yet." Check back here.

Access the Indianapolis Star coverage ("Ex-welfare worker's lawsuit gets OK: 2 who said they were victims of religious discrimination by state get different results") here. According to the Star story:

Benjamin P. Endres Jr., who refused to work at the Blue Chip Casino in Michigan City in 2000, lost his lawsuit. Patricia Holmes, however, was allowed to proceed with her suit.

Posted by Marcia Oddi at June 28, 2003 08:13 AM