Lawsuit against Nebraska prison alleges federal civil rights violation

Two Native American inmates are suing Nebraska’s prison system, alleging federal civil rights violations.

The lawsuit filed this week on behalf of Joshua Lewis and Tremayne Scott alleges that the Nebraska Department of Corrections is violating their freedom to practice their sincerely held religious beliefs.

According to the lawsuit, the two men and dozens of other incarcerated Native American inmates received notice in late February that state prison officials had issued a 60-day ban on access to a religious space in the prison yard at the Nebraska State Penitentiary. The space is the only place within the facility where prison officials allow certain Native American religious practices to occur. The ban prevents practices that are central to their faith, including smudging, smoking red willow bark and participating in sweat ceremonies.

Lewis is Cherokee and of Tarasca descent. Scott is a member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska and Big Fire Law & Policy Group are representing the two men. They said in a joint news release that Lewis and Scott believe the ban was put in place as punishment for contraband found with religious supplies. The men have filed multiple administrative grievances, including an emergency grievance, but the restrictions remain in place.

The lawsuit argues that the ban violates both the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act as well as Nebraska’s First Freedom Act. It seeks immediate court action to prohibit the prison system from restricting the men’s religious exercise while litigation plays out, a permanent order at the end of litigation cementing that protection, and a judgment that the state prison system cannot lawfully restrict participation in traditional Indigenous faith practices.

“For Indigenous people, spiritual practices like smudging and sweat lodge ceremonies are sacred and essential to maintaining balance, healing and connection to culture,” Danelle Smith, partner at Big Fire Law & Policy Group, said in the news release. “Denying access to these practices causes real harm — especially in a prison setting where spiritual grounding can be critical.”

Carter Matt, an ACLU of Nebraska staff attorney, said both state and federal law “make it clear that restrictions on religious liberty need to clear a high bar, and this arbitrary restriction does not meet that bar.”

“The bottom line is that it is not the state’s role to restrict religious exercise or to pick and choose which traditional practices are appropriate for our Native American clients,” Matt said in the release.

A Nebraska Department of Corrections spokesperson said the department does not comment on active litigation.