Court denies Va. inmate's lawsuit over beard
Recent Cases
A federal court has denied a Muslim inmate's lawsuit claiming the Virginia prison system violated his religious rights by refusing to allow him to grow a 1/8-inch beard.
William Couch challenged the Department of Corrections' grooming policy that bans long hair or beards.
A federal court in Harrisonburg sided with the department Thursday.
Couch's attorney, Jeffrey Fogel, filed an appeal Monday. He argues the beard is too short to allow Couch to easily change his appearance or hide weapons, which is the department's reason for the policy.
A federal appellate court ruled against a group of inmates who sued the department after the grooming policy was instituted in 1999. Several lived in segregation for more than a decade until the department developed a separate living space for them last year.
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USCIS changed the processing location for certain Form I-730, Refugee/Asylee Relative Petition, filings. Previously the Service Center Operations Directorate processed these filings. Now, the International Adjudications Support Branch (IASB) in the Refugee, Asylum, and International Operations Directorate will process the petitions filed by individuals who were admitted to the United States as refugees. Petitioners and/or accredited representatives who file refugee-based Form I-730 petitions will receive further instructions when IASB receives their filings. Form I-730 petitions filed by persons granted asylum will not be affected by this change. The mailing instructions for Form I-730 remain the same. Petitioners should continue to follow the Where to File directions on the Form I-730 page. This policy update is consistent with the Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) Standard Occupational Classification system. DOL defines economists as people who conduct research, prepare reports, or formulate plans to address economic problems related to the production and distribution of goods and services or monetary and fiscal policy. Economists may collect and process economic and statistical data using sampling techniques and econometric methods.