Jewish Police Officer May Wear Beard on Duty

The Las Vegas Police Department must allow an Orthodox Jewish officer to wear a trimmed beard on the same basis as it permits officers to wear beards for medical reasons, a federal judge in Nevada has ruled.

U.S. District Judge Roger Hunt said that although the department had a right to require its officers to maintain a "religiously neutral appearance so as to appear free of personal bias," most people are unlikely to view a closely trimmed beard like the one plaintiff Steve Riback requests as a religious symbol.

The judge also said the police could not allow beards for medical reasons (certain skin conditions can be aggravated by shaving) but deny the right to wear beards for religious reasons.

However, Judge Hunt did not find that Riback's right of free exercise of religion entitled him to wear a yarmulke while on duty. A yarmulke is a skullcap worn by Jewish men, especially those of the Orthodox or Conservative tradition.

The judge noted that Riback had not shown that the Police Department's headgear regulation was not neutral or generally applicable to all officers or had any exemptions, like the beard policy.

Riback's Orthodox faith requires him to wear a beard and to cover his head. However, his profession requires that he shave and not wear a hat indoors.

At his request, Riback was assigned to department's non-uniformed quality-assurance unit, according to the opinion.

His supervisor allowed him to wear a trimmed beard and a yarmulke until a deputy chief noticed Riback's appearance and demanded that he shave. Riback complied.

He then asked the department's new diversity director for a formal religious accommodation for his beard and yarmulke.

The department denied his request, explaining that the no-beard policy was necessary for safety reasons and for maintaining officer uniformity. The yarmulke was barred because wearing religious symbols "would undermine officer neutrality and erode public trust," the department said.

Riback sued the department and several individuals in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada, alleging violations of his First and 14th Amendment right of free exercise of religion; violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e; and retaliation in violation of state and federal law.

Both sides moved for summary judgment, and Judge Hunt granted Riback's motion on his First Amendment claim to wear a beard.

The judge also granted the defendants' motion on Riback's free-speech and state law employment discrimination and retaliation claims.

With respect to Riback's request to wear a beard, Judge Hunt found that the department's medical exemption undermined its interests in uniform appearance and officer morale because it failed to explain why religious beards and not medical beards deterred these interests.

Therefore, the no-beard policy is invalid under the free-exercise clause, Judge Hunt concluded.

Next, he found issues of fact on Riback's Title VII religious accommodation claim as to his request to wear a yarmulke.

A jury must decide if the Police Department made a good-faith effort to accommodate Riback's request to wear a yarmulke or a baseball cap to cover the yarmulke and if Riback's request imposes an undue hardship on the department, the judge said.

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Riback is represented by Allen Lichtenstein and Lee Rowland of the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada in Reno; G. Scott Emblidge, James Quadra and Sylvia Sokol of Moscone, Emblidge & Quadra in San Francisco; and Vincent Hurley in Aptos, Calif.Counsel for the defendants are Conti Moore, Lisa McClane and Craig Anderson of Marquis & Aurbach in Las Vegas.