Religious Exemption Claim by Nonprofit Providing Supervised Illegal Drug Use Can Go Forward

Judge Rules Safehouse Philly Can Use Religious Rights Defense Against DOJ

A federal appeals court sided with a nonprofit attempting to open an overdose prevention center (OPC) in Philadelphia, reversing a lower court decision and ruling that religious freedom and free exercise protections are applicable to nearly any group claiming a religious motivation for its actions. In an opinion from a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, the court remanded the case, Safehouse v. Departm…

Federal Court Sides With Safe Drug Consumption Site, Saying Religious Protections Apply

A federal appeals court last week sided with a nonprofit attempting to open a supervised drug consumption facility in Philadelphia, reversing a lower court decision and ruling that religious freedom and free exercise protections are applicable to nearly any group claiming a religious motivation for its actions. In an opinion from a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, the court remanded the case, Safehouse v. Dep…

Religious Exemption Claim by Nonprofit Providing Supervised Illegal Drug Use Can Go Forward

From U.S. v. Safehouse, decided Thursday by Third Circuit Judge David Porter, joined by Judges Thomas Hardiman and Michael Fisher: Safehouse, a Pennsylvania nonprofit corporation, was established in 2018 to address the abuse of opioids in Philadelphia. It seeks to provide overdose prevention services, including supervised illegal drug use. According to Safehouse, what it calls "medically supervised consumption" is salutary because opioid overdos…