U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit Issues Unanimous Opinion in Religious Freedom Case

On March 4, 2026, Hecker Fink, along with co-counsel Rights Behind Bars, prevailed in an appeal involving a lawsuit brought by Rodney Douglas Eaves, a prisoner in the custody of the Colorado Department of Corrections (“CDOC”) who practices the Sac and Fox tribal religious tradition.  Mr. Eaves sued various Colorado officials, including the Governor of Colorado, for violating his religious freedom by denying his requests to: cleanse his cell; access faith grounds during and after the COVID pandemic; and possess sacred items for use in religious practice.

The Governor of Colorado moved to dismiss Mr. Eaves’s complaint based on Eleventh Amendment immunity. The district court denied that motion, finding that the Governor was not immune from Mr. Eaves’s claims for injunctive relief under the exception established in Ex Parte Young, 209 U.S. 123 (1908).  Hecker Fink and Rights Behind Bars were retained on appeal to defend the district court’s decision.

The Court unanimously determined that the district court properly denied the Governor’s motion to dismiss on the basis of Eleventh Amendment immunity.  In its decision, the Tenth Circuit had to also determine whether CDOC had rendered Mr. Eaves’s claims constitutionally or prudentially moot by transferring him to another facility during the pendency of his appeal and whether it could consider Mr. Eaves’s affidavit—attached to the supplemental briefing the Court ordered after oral argument—explaining that he was still facing the same burdens on his ability to practice his religious tradition notwithstanding his transfer to a different CDOC facility.  The Court unanimously resolved both issues in Mr. Eaves’s favor and remanded the matter for further proceedings.

The Rights Behind Bars team includes Sam Weiss, founder and Executive Director of Rights Behind Bars.  The Hecker Fink team includes Joshua Matz, Jeffrey Then, and Madison Singh.

The opinion is available here.