The Prince George County Sheriff's Office has heard about legal disputes in other parts of the country over a Muslim woman's right to wear religious head covering in a courtroom, and asked the Maryland AG for an opinion before the issue arises there too. The Baltimore Sun reports on Douglas Gansler's answer:
Muslim women and others who wear face coverings for religious purposes can be required to remove the garb to enter courthouses, Maryland's attorney general has determined in a legal opinion, raising concerns among civil liberties advocates about how the practice will be carried out.
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…Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler's office said it weighed the First Amendment right to freedom of religion against the state's interest in securing courthouses. It found that for security or identification, law enforcement could require individuals to temporarily remove masks, veils and other face coverings at security checkpoints if the policy is applied consistently.
The opinion did offer some guidelines though for the manner in which such removal should be conducted:
To minimize potential conflicts, Gansler's office suggests that security details have male and female officers and that a private space be set aside at courthouse entrances for those whose religion discourages them from removing a head covering in public or in front of a member of the opposite sex.
Earlier this year, the Baptist Joint Committee urged Michigan's Supreme Court to allow head coverings in the state's courtrooms.
