Kuperman v. Warden, NHSP

2009 DNH 175
District Court, D. New Hampshire·Decided November 20, 2009·No. CV-06-420-JL·Published

Opinion

Kuperman v . Warden, NHSP CV-06-420-JL 11/20/09 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT DISTRICT OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

Albert Kuperman

v. Civil N o . 06-cv-420-JL Opinion N o . 2009 DNH 175 Warden, New Hampshire State Prison, and Acting Warden, Northern New Hampshire Correctional Facility

OPINION AND ORDER

In this case, an inmate challenges a prison policy that allowed his religious diet to be suspended for six months because of a single dietary violation. Plaintiff Albert Kuperman, currently an inmate at the New Hampshire State Prison, has sued the wardens of that facility and the Northern New Hampshire Correctional Facility in their official capacities, alleging that the policy violated his rights to free exercise of religion under the First Amendment and the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000cc et seq. (“RLUIPA”). This court has jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. §§ 1331 (federal question) and 1343 (civil rights).

The defendants have moved for summary judgment under Rule 56 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, arguing that recent changes to the prison policy on religious diets have mooted Kuperman’s challenge, which seeks only prospective injunctive

relief.1 After hearing oral argument, this court grants the motion. The prison’s policy changes, while not necessarily sufficient to satisfy the First Amendment and RLUIPA, have removed any real and immediate prospect of harm to Kuperman and thus have mooted his claims. Moreover, Kuperman is collaterally estopped from bringing those claims by his prior, unsuccessful attempt to litigate the same issue in state court.

I. Applicable legal standard Summary judgment is appropriate where the pleadings, along with any affidavits on file, show that there is “no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the movant is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c). An issue is “genuine” if it may reasonably be resolved in either party’s favor at trial, and “material” if it has the capacity to sway the outcome under applicable law. Vineberg v . Bissonnette, 548 F.3d 5 0 , 56 (1st Cir. 2008) (quotations omitted). In making this

1 Kuperman initially sought both injunctive and monetary relief. Because he brought his claims against state actors in their official capacities, however, this court determined that money damages were barred by the Eleventh Amendment, leaving only his request for prospective injunctive relief. See document nos. 6 and 8 . Kuperman later sought clarification of that ruling, and this court confirmed that “plaintiff may not recover money damages in this case.” See document n o . 53 and associated margin order dated March 1 7 , 2009.

determination, the court must "scrutinize the record in the light most flattering to the party opposing the motion, indulging all reasonable inferences in that party’s favor." Mulvihill v . Top- Flite Golf Co., 335 F.3d 1 5 , 19 (1st Cir. 2003). The following statement of facts conforms to those requirements.

II. Background Kuperman has been incarcerated in the New Hampshire prison system since April 2004, initially at the Northern New Hampshire Correctional Facility and then at the New Hampshire State Prison (collectively, the “prison”). Upon arrival, Kuperman requested and was granted a kosher diet, based on his professed belief in and practice of orthodox Judaism. At the time, the prison’s Policy and Procedure Directive (“PPD”) 7.172 required an automatic six-month suspension of an inmate’s religious diet if the inmate either consumed or possessed food in violation of the diet.

Kuperman purchased non-kosher food from the prison canteen in September 2004, and the prison automatically suspended his kosher meal privileges under PPD 7.17. Kuperman, claiming he made the purchase on behalf of another inmate, brought suit

2 PPD 7.17 was issued pursuant to N.H. Rev. Stat. §§ 622:22-

23 and N.H. Code R. Cor. 302.07.

against the prison in state court. The court dismissed his case on the merits, concluding that PPD 7.17 “provides an opportunity for the petitioner to exercise his constitutionally guaranteed rights of religious belief.” Kuperman v . Lurry, N o . 04-E-119, at 4 (N.H. Super. C t . Dec. 2 0 , 2004) (Vaughan, P . J . ) .

The prison suspended Kuperman’s kosher meal privileges again in May 2005 after prison staff observed him eating non-kosher chicken in the chow hall. Kuperman again brought suit against the prison, this time in federal court, alleging both First Amendment and RLUIPA violations. The court denied preliminary injunctive relief, concluding that Kuperman was unlikely to succeed on the merits. It then dismissed his case without prejudice for failure to exhaust his administrative remedies. Kuperman v . Comm’r, N.H. Dep’t of Corr., N o . 05-cv-00185-PB, 2005 WL 1657082 (D.N.H. June 2 4 , 2005) (Barbadoro, J . ) , aff’d, N o . 05- 2348 (1st Cir. Nov. 6, 2006).

In July 2006, the prison modified PPD 7.17 so that an inmate’s violation of his religious diet would result in a six- month suspension only if the inmate acted knowingly and intentionally. The sanction was no longer automatic. Shortly after this revision, in October 2006, prison staff again observed Kuperman eating non-kosher chicken in the chow hall. For a third time, the prison suspended his kosher meal privileges. Kuperman

responded by filing this lawsuit, alleging First Amendment and RLUIPA violations.3

This court granted a preliminary injunction to Kuperman in April 2007, as recommended by Judge Muirhead after an evidentiary hearing. See Kuperman v . N.H. Dep’t of Corr., 2007 DNH 059, 14 (Muirhead, M.J.) (finding “that this particular prison regulation ... is not constitutional when applied in such a way as to suspend an inmate with sincerely held religious beliefs from his religious diet for limited incidents of violations of the diet”). The injunction ordered the defendants to restore Kuperman’s kosher meal privileges immediately and to refrain from suspending them in the future based on isolated dietary violations. Id. Kuperman has been on a kosher diet since that time, notwithstanding one additional instance of alleged kosher food consumption in the chow hall.

3 Kuperman also brought a number of other claims against the defendants: an Eighth Amendment claim for failure to protect him from a series of sexual assaults; another Eighth Amendment claim for failure to provide adequate medical care; a related commonlaw negligence claim; and a claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), 42 U.S.C. §§12312 et seq. This court dismissed the ADA claim as legally insufficient. See document nos. 6 and 8 . Kuperman then voluntarily dismissed the federal and state medical-care claims. See document nos. 37 and 4 5 . At oral argument on this summary judgment motion, Kuperman’s counsel informed the court that Kuperman also voluntarily dismissed his failure-to-protect claim (which had been briefed by both parties).

The prison has since modified PPD 7.17 in a number of additional respects, making it more favorable to inmates. The policy now provides that an inmate’s first three violations of his religious diet will result in counseling with the prison chaplain, not a suspension of the diet. After a fourth violation within a two-year period, the inmate’s diet may be withdrawn by the prison warden at the recommendation of the chaplain, but only after the inmate receives fifteen days’ notice and an opportunity to defend himself in writing. If unsuccessful, the inmate may file an appeal with the Commissioner (though doing so will not stay the dietary withdrawal). In addition, the inmate may apply for reinstatement of his religious diet. The policy prohibits immediate reinstatement, but no longer imposes a set period of suspension, stating only that the reinstatement process “ordinarily may extend up to thirty days.”

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