Muslim Brooklyn Inmate Denied Ramadan Meals Files $10M Lawsuit

DOWNTOWN, BROOKLYN — Correction officers at the Brooklyn House of Detention denied a Muslim man the only meals he eats each day during the holy month of Ramadan for three days in a row, a new lawsuit claims.

Andre Diggs, who was held at the jail waiting for his trial, filed a $10 million lawsuit on Tuesday against two correction officers who he says took him off a list of prisoners meant to get pre-dawn meals during Ramadan, a holy month where Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset.

The officers, Diggs said, didn't give him his pre-dawn meal three days in a row in May, forcing him to either not eat for three days or stop practicing the religious holiday.

"(This is) cruel and unusual punishment because I am fasting and without this meal I was left to starve," Driggs wrote. "Either I starve or I can't practice my religion and fast for the holy month of Ramadan, which is depriving me of my First Amendment right to properly practice my religious freedom."

Driggs said he first wasn't given his pre-dawn meal, known as a suhoor bag, on May 8, the third day of fasting for Ramadan, which this year started the evening of May 5, according to the lawsuit.

Early the next morning, officers woke Driggs up at 3:30 a.m. to eat the meal, even though he had never been given it, Driggs said.

That night, when Driggs asked officers for his meal during lock-in time he was told that a correction officer identified as "C.O. Sulieman" in the lawsuit had taken him off the Ramadan list. His removal from the list was then approved by another officer identified as "Captain Bowser-Williams," the lawsuit claims.

Driggs didn't get his meals May 9 or May 10 either, and decided on May 11 to file a complaint, the lawsuit shows. He was put back on the Ramadan list by May 21, Driggs said.

The lawsuit argues that both correction officers involved violated Driggs' constitutional rights and that he should be given $10 million in "damages" for the incidents.

When asked about the lawsuit, the Department of Corrections referred Patch to a set of guidelines that says inmates should be allowed to practice their religion so long as it does not present "clear and present danger" to others.

“We take extensive measures to accommodate all religious practices for people in our custody, including dietary needs," DOC Press Secretary Jason Kersten said.

Records show that Driggs is now being held at the Manhattan Detention Complex. He is facing grand larceny charges and a warrant on criminal sale of a controlled substance.