HOLT V. HOBBS: PETITIONER'S SIDE OF THE CASE The objective of this study is to answer the legal question of whether the Arkansas Department of Corrections grooming policy violate the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act by preventing Holt from growing a one-half inch beard in accordance with his religious beliefs. Facts of the Case The petitioner in this case, Gregory Holt is who also known as Abdul Maalik Muhammad, an inmate

Supreme Court's recent decision to ban the execution of mentally challenged individuals raises important ethical issues. Judges must be able to determine if a person is indeed mentally challenged. While the legal system and psychology have made important insights into this issue, there is still some inconsistency in the definition and application of mental retardation in the judicial system. Accordingly, an analysis of the ethical principles underlying the issue

However, this Court also recognizes that mental illness oftentimes differs from other immutable characteristics, such as mental retardation and age, in that a defendant oftentimes has the ability to control mental illness through medical interventions. While there is tremendous evidence of Panetti's deteriorated mental state, there is very little evidence to support Panetti's assertions that he was insane at the time of the murders. Though there are serious questions regarding

heard in the U.S. Supreme Court -- Washington v. Harper -- will be the focus of the first part of this paper. The second part reviews prison conditions in Texas. Washington v. Harper -- Part One This was a case resulting from the unstable mental condition of Walter Harper, who has been incarcerated in the Washington state prison system since a robbery conviction in 1976. Harper has been administered antipsychotic drugs

In fact, while Great Britain is liberal in many areas, prison rights does not seem to be one of them. Prisoners commonly appeal conditions to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), which has a much more liberal stance on human and inmate rights than those of Great Britain. For example, "On its 2005 visit to UK prisons, the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT), was highly

inmate health care issues are significantly different from those of average Americans. Furthermore, in many cases it is accurate to say that these issues have been exacerbated by the process and lifestyle propagated by incarceration. The primary issue facing prisoners is a marked lack of medical and health care treatment, which may become manifest in myriad forms including through a lack of medication, proper facilities, competent professionals and a