The U.S. Supreme Court seemed ready on Tuesday to allow a Muslim prisoner in Arkansas to wear a half-inch beard for religious reasons, even though a lawyer for the state said the prison’s “security objectives are undermined” by beards.
Justices were dubious, even mocking, during oral arguments on Holt v. Hobbs when Deputy Arkansas Attorney General David Curran said even a short beard could conceal contraband and enable prisoners to change their appearance easily within the prison or if they escape.
