The Anchorage Correctional Complex is a pretrial and jail facility where inmates generally stay on a shorter-term basis
Muslim inmates are suing state corrections officials, arguing that officials at an Alaska jail are providing them with inadequate nourishment as they break their daily fasts during Ramadan.
In documents filed Tuesday in Alaska's U.S. District Court, the Washington D.C. -based Council on American-Islamic Relations claim prisoners in an Anchorage jail are being denied their constitutional rights.
The lawsuit alleged that two inmates at Anchorage Correctional Complex are not receiving the appropriate meals or necessary calories during Ramadan.
The DOC wouldn't comment on the lawsuit but said that it "accommodates many different faiths", including Islam, inside Alaska facilities and goes out of its way to make sure Muslim inmates can eat their meals in accordance with Ramadan fasting guidelines.
A United States federal judge granted a restraining order on Thursday forcing prison guards in Alaska to stop giving Muslim inmates pork as they break their fasts during Ramadan, rights campaigners said. Sunrise in Anchorage is shortly before 5 am and sunset is about 11 pm.
"The Constitution and Congress forbid prisons from compelling inmates to choose between their faith and food", CAIR's National Litigation Director Lena Masri said in a statement.
Additionally, the bags sometimes contain food made of pork, which she said they can not eat due to their faith. "So you're talking about even less calories in those situations", she said.
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USA law requires prisons to "allow for the temporary accommodation of multi-day religious fasting and dietary prohibitions, including fasting during Ramadan", the lawsuit filing explains.
But it says the policy at the Anchorage Correctional Complex does not provide Muslim inmates observing Ramadan with a balanced diet. According to the Department of Corrections, Muslim inmates are each given two bagged meals every night to eat in their cells, so they're able to break their fast during those hours. Any inmate who wants to can sign up for Ramadan meals, she said.
Dowl and Jacobsson were not allowed to save food in their shared cell, according to the lawsuit.
CAIR on Tuesday filed a lawsuit in federal court against several corrections officials, including DOC Commissioner Dean Williams.
Inmates observing Ramadan get two sacks, each with "two turkey bologna sandwiches, or chicken salad sandwiches, or hummus, TVP (textured vegetable protein) patty, tofu patty, or rice and bean burrito or peanut butter for our vegetarian and vegan inmates" plus "two pieces of fruit, veggie sticks, milk, plus cookies or cake", according to the DOC. The complaint seeks an emergency hearing and immediate injunction to fix the problems.
Ramadan began on May 16 and ends around June 15. It says the inmates have unsuccessfully filed grievances over the policy and exhausted their ability to obtain emergency relief through the administrative process.
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