Atheist Awarded $1.95 Million For Religious Drug Rehab Program
A California inmate has settled for $1.95 million with the state after he was forced to take a religious-themed 12-step program as part of his parole agreement.
Barry Hazle, an atheist, was arrested for methamphetamine possession in 2007 and put on a one year parole. As part of his parole, Hazle had to attend a 12-step drug rehabilitation program that called on him to submit to a higher power; the program was modeled after the Alcoholics Anonymous program.
When Hazle refused to participate in the program due to his atheist faith, he was reportedly re-arrested for violating his parole. Then, this week, Hazle settled for a $1.95 million settlement with the state of California for wrongful incarceration and a violation of his religious liberty.
The atheist plaintiff told the San Francisco Gate that he is less concerned about the money and more interested in ensuring that no other atheist has to undergo a religious-themed drug rehabilitation program. "I just want to make sure that somebody else doesn't have to go through this kind of thing," he said.
"I'm thrilled to finally have this case settled," Hazle said in a statement following the hearing on Tuesday. "It sends a clear message to people in a position of authority, like my parole agent, for example, that they not mandate religious programming for their parolees, and for anyone else, for that matter."
The 46-year-old is the son of Maline Hazle, the Record Searchlight's editorial page editor, according to The Christian Post.
