UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT

┐ FATHIREE UDDIN ALI, │ Plaintiff-Appellant, │ > No. 24-1540 │ v. │ │ STEPHEN E. ADAMSON, Chaplain; DAVID M. LEACH, │ Special Activities Coordinator; SHANE JACKSON, │ Warden; MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS, │ Defendants-Appellees. │ ┘

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan at Grand Rapids. No. 1:21-cv-00071—Hala Y. Jarbou, District Judge.

Argued: March 19, 2025

Decided and Filed: March 28, 2025

Before: SUTTON, Chief Judge; GRIFFIN and MATHIS, Circuit Judges. _________________

COUNSEL ARGUED: D Dangaran, RIGHTS BEHIND BARS, Washington, D.C., for Appellant. Christopher Alex, OFFICE OF THE MICHIGAN ATTORNEY GENERAL, Lansing, Michigan, for Appellees. ON BRIEF: Samuel Weiss, RIGHTS BEHIND BARS, Washington, D.C., for Appellant. Christopher Alex, OFFICE OF THE MICHIGAN ATTORNEY GENERAL, Lansing, Michigan, for Appellees. _________________

OPINION _________________

SUTTON, Chief Judge. Fathiree Ali, a Muslim inmate, asked the Michigan Department of Corrections to serve him only halal food, a special diet required by his religion. After the No. 24-1540 Ali v. Adamson et al. Page 2

prison chaplain directed him to apply for the prison’s vegan meal option, another official rejected his application upon learning that he had purchased over one hundred non-halal items from the prison commissary. The district court dismissed Ali’s claim against the Department of Corrections and granted summary judgment to the officers. We dismiss Ali’s appeal in part for lack of jurisdiction and affirm the rest of the district court’s decision.

I.

Eating and fasting are central to many faith groups. Michigan prisons seek to accommodate a wide range of inmates whose beliefs require distinct diets. They offer three options: a regular menu, a vegetarian menu, and a vegan menu. The vegan menu complies with most kosher and halal dietary restrictions.

Not everyone is eligible for the vegan meal plan. To qualify, a prisoner must make a written request to the prison warden, who refers the request to the prison’s special activities coordinator for approval. If the vegan meal “does not meet” an inmate’s “religious dietary needs,” the Department permits the inmate to request an alternative menu, subject to the “approval of the Deputy Director” of the Department of Corrections. R.33-3 at 7. The Department may rescind its approval if the inmate repeatedly eats food inconsistent with his professed faith.

Fathiree Ali is a Muslim inmate who used to be confined in Michigan’s Carson City Correctional Facility. His faith contains two dietary restrictions. He must “consume a [halal] diet,” which “must include meat,” “dairy, chicken, eggs, honey, fish, cheese, lamb,” and animal “fats.” R.53-2 at 3. To “exclude any” is haram, “a major sin and act of disbelief.” R.53-2 at 3. In a