Hide Transcript Show Transcript

WEBVTT USUAL COURT BATTLE. PMATT WHEN INMATES CHECK IN TO A P: NEW MEXICO PRISON, THEIR PRIGHTS TO PRACTICE A RELIGION PARE TYPICALLY PROTECTED. PBUT ONE FORMER INMATE SAYS HER PRIGHTS WERE VIOLATED, WHEN SHE PTRIED TO PRACTICE SATANSIM. P-- SATANISM. P>> .THIS IS A CASE THAT STRIKES PAT THE HEART OF QUESTIONS OF PRELIGIOUS FREEDOM. PMATT MONICA LUJAN IS SUING A P: STATE PRISON CHAPLAIN AND THE PCORRECTIONS CORPORATION OF PAMERICA, A PRIVATE COMPANY THAT PHELPS THE STATE RUN SOME OF ITS PFACILITIES. PIN THE SUIT, LUJAN CLAIMS SHE PWAS DENIED THE RIGHT TO HAVE A PSATANIC BIBLE DURING HER 3 YEAR PSTINT AT A PRISON IN GRANTS. PHER LAWSUIT SAYS PRISON POFFICIALS TOLD HER THAT SATANISM PWAS PROHIBITED, AND THAT SHE PFACED RETALIATION FOR BEING A PBELIEVER. P>> STAFF AT THE FACILITY WERE PDISAPPROVING OF HER RELIGION AND PDENYING HER ABILITY TO PRACTIC PTHAT RELIGION. PMATT THE ACLU, WHICH IS HELPING P: IN THE LEGAL FIGHT, SAYS PALMOST ALL OF LUJAN'S BELONGINGS PWERE TAKEN WHEN OFFICERS FOUND PPHOTOCOPIES OF THE SATANIC BIBLE PIN HER BUNK. PLUJAN CLAIMS THAT LEFT HER WITH PJUST ONE PAIR OF UNDERWEAR, THAT PSHE SAYS SHE WORE FOR FOUR PMONTHS. P>> WE WOULD EXPECT THAT OUR PCLIENT WOULD HAVE BEEN TREATED PTHE SAME AS ANYONE ELSE WHO PPRACTICES ANY OTHER RELIGION. PMATT THE CORRECTIONS DEPARTMENT P: WOULDN'T COMMENT ON THE PLAWSUIT, BUT BUT DID SAY INMATES PCAN PRACTICE SATANISM BEHIND PBARS PAS LONG AS ITS NOT A THREAT TO PSECURITY. P>> WE RECOGNIZE MULTIPLE PRELIGIONS, THAT GOES THROUGH PWHAT THEIR HOLY DAYS ARE WHAT PPROPERTY THEY'RE ALLOWED TO PHAVE, HOW THEY PRACTICE THAT PRELIGION. PMATT BUT THE ACLU SAYS LUJAN WAS P: NEVER A THREAT, AND THAT ALL PSHE WANTED WAS A BOOK. PLUJAN HAS BEEN IN AND OUT OF THE PCORRECTIONAL SYSTEM SINCE 2005, PFOR A SERIES OF LOW LEVEL DRUG

Advertisement Satanist inmate: Prison officials prohibited me from practicing my religion Lawsuit seeks damages for violating religious freedoms Share Shares Copy Link Copy

A former inmate of the New Mexico prison system is suing a senior chaplain of the corrections department and other prison officials for not allowing her to practice Satanism behind bars. In her lawsuit, Monica Lujan claims that she’s been a Satanist since the age of 13 and was just released from the New Mexico Women’s Correctional Facility in Grants. According to court records, Lujan was serving a three-year sentence for low level drug crimes and forgery. Lujan says during her stay at the facility, she was denied the right to have a Satanic bible several times. According to her lawsuit, Lujan claims that prison officials told her that Satanism was prohibited and that she faced retaliation for being a believer. The New Mexico ACLU is aiding Lujan in her legal fight. “This is a case that strikes at the heart of questions of religious freedom,” ACLU Executive Director Peter Simonson said. “The staff at the facility were disapproving of her religion and were denying her ability to practice that religion.” The lawsuit continues, saying that almost all of Lujan’s belongings were taken when officers found photocopies of the Satanic bible, a prayer book, and a drawing of a pentagram in her bunk. Lujan claims that seizure left her with just one pair of underwear, that she says she wore for four months. “We would expect that our client would have been treated the same as anyone else who practices any other religion,” Simonson said. “The government doesn’t really have the ability to pick and choose which religion it’s going to side with, or which religion it’s going to favor.” Alex Sanchez, the Deputy Secretary of Administrative Support for the New Mexico Department of Corrections, wouldn’t comment about the case. But Sanchez did say that inmates in the prison system are allowed to practice Satanism behind bars, as long as religious items and rituals aren’t a threat to security. “We recognize multiple religions, that includes holy days, property inmates are allowed to have, and how they practice that religion,” Sanchez said. Sanchez also said that records show Lujan never claimed any property relating to her religion, such as a bible or other religious items. The Corrections Corporation of America is also listed as a defendant in the suit. CCA is a private company that helps the state run some of its facilities.