Religion Law Quiz #31 (Can you pause an arrest to pray?)

True or False: When a police officer validly arrests a suspect and orders the suspect to get into the police vehicle, the suspect can temporarily pause the process by insisting on being allowed time to offer a brief prayer (consistent with the First Amendment protections for free speech and the free exercise of religion)? 

 

(Scroll down for the answer)

 

 

 

 

 

Answer: False.  The Supreme Court addressed this situation in a 2018 decision which arose from an incident that occurred in Louisburg, Kansas.  Specifically, the Supreme Court stated:

 

There can be no doubt that the First Amendment protects the right to pray. Prayer unquestionably constitutes the “exercise” of religion. At the same time, there are clearly circumstances in which a police officer may lawfully prevent a person from praying at a particular time and place. For example, if an officer places a suspect under arrest and orders the suspect to enter a police vehicle for transportation to jail, the suspect does not have a right to delay that trip by insisting on first engaging in conduct that, at another time, would be protected by the First Amendment. When an officer’s order to stop praying is alleged to have occurred during the course of investigative conduct that implicates Fourth Amendment rights, the First and Fourth Amendment issues may be inextricable.

 

Sause v. Bauer, 138 S.Ct. 2561, 2562-63 (2018)

 

Disclaimer: The Religion Law Quizzes are provided as a service to you. They are intended only for educational purposes. Nothing in the Quizzes is intended to be legal advice and they should not be relied upon as conclusive on any issue discussed therein.