Pastafarian Inmate Sues Prison
Nebraska prisoner Stephen Cavanaugh is suing over the right to pursue his faith in the Flying Spaghetti Monster.
Specifically he wants:
* to dress in religious garments — that is, full pirate regalia — and,
* to take part in weekly meetings with others who hold similar beliefs
He’s also asking for $5 Million in damages related to “deep emotional, psychological, and spiritual pain resulting from being allowed to practice my religion, and Mr. Bartlet [Religious Coordinator, Nebraska State Pen]‘s repeated mocking and insulting of my faith.”
I’m skeptical of anyone asking for money, and my immediate thought was that this is a frivolous lawsuit. But after reading the court documents and talking with people in the know, I feel that here is a troubled guy who is legitimately trying to pursue his faith and, only after being stymied by the in-house prison channels, was forced to take the fight to the courts. Yes the dollar amount he’s asking for is exorbitant (and in my view, hurts his case), but the underlying complaint feels legitimate to me.
One thing I found alarming: in the court docs there’s a claim by prison officials that, when looking into Cavanaugh’s religion, they found “the founder of Pastafarianism stated that it was a parody of religion”, and used this as a reason to deny Cavanaugh his requests for religious garments and group prayer.
They may or may not be referring to me, I don’t know — but I don’t think I’ve ever spoken to any Nebraskan prison officials, and if I did I wouldn’t have used those words.
For the record, I don’t believe Pastafarianism is a parody.
What I say, sometimes, is that some number of Pastafarians do not believe in a literal Flying Spaghetti Monster or our Creation story. And that is perfectly fine — it’s a common thing even in mainstream religion to be skeptical of scripture. The distinction is that in FSM, the culture is more accepting of people who are skeptical-minded, while in many mainstream religions, doubt is seen as an affront to the Dogmatic Truth.
My point is that there are doubters in religion in general, simply because religious scripture can be full of nonsense. You wouldn’t say Christianity is a parody just because some members don’t buy the part about the world being created in 7 days and the talking snake, etc.
Religion is more than a collection of beliefs and rituals, it’s a way to form community and a framework to make sense of our place in the universe. And on this level, I think Prison officials did Cavanaugh a disservice in not allowing him to pursue his faith. I mean, he wasn’t asking for that much. He wanted to buy a pirate costume with his own money and hang out with some other Pastafarians once a week.
One last point I’d like to make: lets consider that maybe the prison officials are simply unenlightened about the FSM. Maybe this is just a misunderstanding, rather than outright religious persecution. I suspect that Mr. Cavanaugh may be willing to call of the fight if the prison officials would relent and allow him to pursue his faith.
Here are the best articles I’ve found, if you’d like to keep reading about Cavanaugh’s case:
[1] Great article (and spectacular title) by ThinkProgress about the Cavanaugh lawsuit — Inmate Sues Prison Claiming His Religious Liberty Entitles Him To Dress Like A Pirate
[2] The raw court documents (PDF)
[3] Here’s an article where some lawyers are discussing whether the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster may have some influence in rethinking the RLUIPA (religion in prison) laws
= new reply since forum marked as read
But he needs to ask for more IMO. If this involved a "christian" they'd ask for a lot more money and their silly religion is just as valued as Pastafarianism. 
The Pastafarianism should ask the jail to make everyone go to at least one of their get togethers like they do for the christians so that other Pastafarian followers would be able to choose another religion other than christian. And when it comes for their parole meetings, their god needs to be looked at the same way if they find Pasta.
5 Commandments of Pasta:
1. Thou shall NEVER use Ragu
2. Thou shall never boil longer than 8 minutes
3. Thou shall always use tongs when preparing pasta
4. Thou shall never covet spaghetti sauce which is from thy neighbor
5. Thou shall always honor peppers and onions.
Use that spoon-like thing w/ 'fingers' on the edges. Much more gentle. And efficient. 
Parody or not, Pastafarianism more or less recognized and religious freedom must apply to all.
Man sentenced to prison for threats with hatchet
Posted: Tuesday, September 3, 2013 10:52 pm
By Sarah Schulz
... Stephen W. Cavanaugh, 22, was sentenced to two to four years in prison for attempted first-degree assault for a July 29, 2012, incident involving Stephen Stangler and one to two years in prison for using a hatchet to commit the attempted assault ... He was also sentenced to two to four years in prison for attempted first-degree assault for the same incident involving Kyle Russell and one to two years in prison for using a hatchet to commit that crime ... The charges were filed after Stangler; his wife, Maile Stangler; and Russell reported that Cavanaugh came to the Stanglers’ home at about 1:30 a.m. for an arranged meeting, according to Grand Island police. The Stanglers each had protection orders against Cavanaugh, and he had one against Stephen Stangler. When Cavanaugh arrived at the Stanglers’ home, he made threats and chased Stephen Stangler and Russell around with the hatchet, according to police ... Cavanaugh was sentenced in Hall County District Court on Aug. 29 and was given 416 days credit for the time he has served in jail pending the outcome of the case.
http://www.theindependent.com/news/local/man-sentenced-to-prison-for-threats-with-hatchet/article_30dd795a-1515-11e3-8d2a-0019bb2963f4.html
Judge: State inmates not entitled to minimum wage
October 30, 2014 4:00 pm
By MARGERY A. BECK / The Associated Press2
... Stephen Cavanaugh, 23, sued several state prison officials, saying that over the past year, he has been assigned to work as a food server, window washer and prison yard maintenance worker, with his work time varying between six hours and eight hours a day for five to seven days a week. Cavanaugh, who represented himself in the lawsuit, said he was paid between $1.21 and $2.25 a day for the work ... But U.S. District Judge Laurie Smith Camp dismissed the lawsuit Wednesday, saying that while state law sets minimum wage at $7.25 an hour, another state law specifically allows the director of the state Department of Correctional Services to make rules governing the hours prisoners work and how much they're paid ... Cavanaugh was sentenced in 2013 to at least six years in prison after being found guilty of two counts of attempted first-degree assault and two counts of use of deadly weapon. Police say he threatened two Grand Island men with a hatchet in July 2012 ...
http://journalstar.com/news/local/911/judge-state-inmates-not-entitled-to-minimum-wage/article_267d2ce6-ec8d-5afc-9cf9-d508ba6d44da.html
Inmate wants to worship Flying Spaghetti Monster
September 12, 2014 6:00 am
... Stephen Cavanaugh, 23, filed the federal civil rights lawsuit against the Department of Correctional Services and Nebraska State Penitentiary officials, saying penitentiary staff repeatedly discriminated against him by not allowing him the right to meet for worship services and classes, or to wear religious clothing and pendants ...
By RILEY JOHNSON | LINCOLN JOURNAL STAR
http://journalstar.com/news/local/911/inmate-wants-to-worship-flying-spaghetti-monster/article_a5c2063d-f23b-5fc6-a91c-90cba2e9b9a5.html
