The Michigan Department of Civil Rights has charged the Michigan Department of Corrections with discriminating and retaliating against a Muslim inmate during Ramadan.
The charging document says in 2024, corrections officers ordered a Muslim man incarcerated at Oaks Correctional Facility in Manistee County to report to segregation, where he was strip searched, placed in a shower, and ordered to produce a urine sample for a drug test, despite the officers having no reason to suspect drug use.
The investigation found that the inmate requested additional time to produce the sample, because he was dehydrated from fasting during Ramadan, and the officers refused. According to the Civil Rights Department, officers gave the inmate one cup of water and then ordered him to drink hot water from the shower. After an hour and 8 minutes, the charging document says, officers gave the inmate a disciplinary action for allegedly refusing to submit to the drug test.
The charge says shortly afterwards, the inmate was able to comply, and the test was negative. He was placed in isolation for 10 days anyway, the Civil Rights Department said. Upon his release from the segregation cell, an internal Corrections Department investigation said the disciplinary action should not have been imposed, because it was known within the correctional facility that fasting can produce dehydration.
The Department of Civil Rights has asked that involved staff be ordered to attend non-discrimination and non-retaliation training, and that the Department of Corrections be ordered to compensate the inmate for emotional distress, financial hardship, and lost property during his period of isolation, along with other damages the Michigan Civil Rights Commission deems appropriate.
The Department of Corrections said it does not tolerate discrimination of any kind and has instituted a policy that prohibits discrimination against prisoners based on their religious beliefs or practices. The Corrections Department said it does not agree with the charges of discrimination and retaliation filed by the Michigan Department of Civil Rights.
An administrative law judge will hear the case, with the final decision made by the Michigan Civil Rights Commission.
