(AP) A Muslim inmate who won a U.S. Supreme Court case upholding his right to grow a beard for religious reasons said in a lawsuit that Arkansas officials transferred him to a federal prison in West Virginia in retaliation for several other lawsuits he has filed.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas filed the lawsuit in federal court on behalf of Gregory Holt, also known as Abdul Maalik Muhammad, claiming the transfer violated his constitutional rights.
In 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously that Holt could maintain a half-inch beard because Arkansas prison officials could not substantiate claims that the beard posed a security risk.
The lawsuit filed Thursday argues his transfer was an effort to disrupt his advocacy on behalf of himself and other inmates.
