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MUSLIM WOMAN’S SUIT AGAINST BOP GOES FORWARD

Aleah Mohammed was arrested for healthcare fraud. A devout Muslim woman, she always wore a hijab, the traditional scarf that covered a Muslim woman’s hair, neck and chest. Her faith prohibited her from being in the presence of strange men without wearing it or letting herself be photographed without wearing the hijab.

That, of course, didn’t work well with the BOP, which removed her hijab for the photo that went into her central file and onto her inmate ID.  Even after her release, Aleah’s probation officer could access the photo in her supervised release file.

Over a year ago, Aleah sued in the Eastern District of New York under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The government moved to have the suit dismissed, arguing that because Aleah had been released, she no longer had standing to enjoin the BOP from photographing her without her hijab, and she lacked standing to get an injunction against the BOP doing it to someone else. Last week, the EDNY denied the government’s motion to dismiss:

The Court is unconvinced that, as Defendants argue, because Aleah is no longer incarcerated, the injunctive and declaratory relief she seeks is entirely prospective. Despite her release, Aleah has clearly alleged that BOP continues to use her uncovered photographs and that the use of the uncovered photographs continues to cause her great emotional distress. Said another way, Defendants continue to take actions to this day that injure Aleah. Indeed, a comparison to Shain v. Ellison, 356 F.3d 211 (2d Cir. 2004), which Defendants cite to as support for their argument, only underscores the ongoing nature of Aleah’s injuries. In Shain, the Second Circuit found that plaintiff failed to establish standing because he failed to show a likelihood of a future encounter with the Nassau County police that would result in an unconstitutional strip search… Aleah, on the other hand, has alleged a continuous injury that she experiences to this day. For example, Aleah alleges that her male probation officer uses an uncovered photograph of [her] during Aleah’s monthly meetings. Indeed, Plaintiff has even seen her uncovered BOP photo in use by a hospital which seemingly has no connection to BOP.

Aleah still has a long way to go to win the case, and any remedy she gets will be limited to her. But a win under the RFRA for any prisoner strengthens the Act’s protection for everyone from Baptists to Buddhists to sweat lodge users to Seventh Day Adventists.

Aleah Mohammed v. Lothrop, Case No. 22-cv-1832, 2026 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 224684 (E.D.N.Y. September 30, 2026)

~ Thomas L. Root