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twitterMetro approves $350,000 settlement in cap, beard case
Detective allowed to wear beard, baseball cap in current job
Steve Marcus
Metro Police Detective Steve Riback, at Chabad of Southern Nevada in April 2007, is receiving a settlement from the department and permission to allow a short beard and head covering in accordance with his faith as an Orthodox Jew.
Monday, Jan. 26, 2009 | 2:51 p.m.
The Metro Fiscal Affairs Committee on Monday approved a $350,000 settlement payment to Detective Steve Riback, an Orthodox Jew who sued the department in 2007 after he was prohibited from wearing a beard and head covering, as mandated by his religion.
Now that the settlement has been approved, Metro officials are willing to discuss some of the more nuanced terms of the settlement. Here are some details the Sun got from Metro attorney Liesl Freedman:
For starters, Riback will be allowed to wear a neatly trimmed beard no more than a quarter-inch long. He will also be allowed to wear a baseball cap — but not a trucker hat — most likely with the LVMPD logo or no logo at all.
Riback can keep his beard and hat as long as he remains in his desk job position with the department's quality assurance office. The detective has agreed not to seek a transfer or promotion for the next two years.
Should he transfer to a different section where beards and hats are not permitted, he will have file a new request for religious accommodation.
The settlement will have implication for all Metro officers. The department is now no longer allowing officers to have a beard in uniform - not even in the case of medical conditions. Officers who do have a medical condition that prevents them from shaving will be given non-uniform assignments until their condition is remedied.
Discussion: 29 comments so far…
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I am extremely offended that a man can stand behind his faith to rape the tax payers out of $350K because he did not want to follow the dress code. Shame on him!!!
I'd like to know just why he is due $350K. What was done to him to cause him to be due this money? The whole justice system in this country is offensive.
The city brought this one on themselves. There's no reason that they couldn't have accommodated the man's religious beliefs instead of giving him a choice between following his conscience and losing his job, or doing what he believes is wrong in order to keep it. The settlement was the result of the city's intransigence in dealing with it. This isn't the PD of the 1950s where everyone has to be clean shaven, dress in a cheap suit and fedora in order to look like J. Edgar Hoover clones. And it wouldn't come as a suprise to find that there was an element of anti-Semitism in the refusal to accommodate him, either.
Unless I'm missing something from this story, Mr Steve Riback should have known that his job might require him to do something against his religion, and therefore not take the job. Has he ever seen a policeman before? Is he not aware of the whole uniform thing? Geez, where is his accountability for that???
Why should the public be forced to pay someone who insists on having an existing position conform to his religious beliefs? It's against my beliefs to help people who insist on being stupid. Where are my rights and the rights of the public being represented here?
I think Steve should give the entire amount to a public charity. I'm sure it's against his religion to accept ill gotten gains. Which is what this appears to be. Shame on you Steve!
I've always been blown away at public sentiment on this story.
So, because this guy works for Metro, he can't find God? Because of this policy, Metro will not allow anyone from any religion that requires a beard to interface with the public. They won't hire an active a Sikh or Hindu required to wear a beard...
And this "He knew the rules" BS is total nonsense. If we abided by that mantra, women wouldn't be allowed into Princeton and Barack Obama wouldn't have gone to Harvard.
johnevegas, my keyboard may melt, but I totally agree with you. If your religion prohibits you from certain things don't do them. Pretty tough to be a bartender if you are Mormon.
captjack, hate to ruin your day but active Sikh or members of the Hindu faith cannot carry weapons. Sorry for the info.
Remember the KEY word, practicing.
And crazy argument about Harvard and Princeton, what does Metro's grooming standards have to do with that.
If this guy wants to drive a desk then let him, I see absolutely no reason for settlement.
Metro are idiots.
"Grooming standard?" What is this, 1950?
Becoming a police officer should have everything to do with your competence and nothing to do with your appearance. I understand a uniform, but not allowing someone to have a beard? Give me a break.
Welcome to 2009, Metro. Stop worrying so much about your fellow cops' grooming and religious habits and do your job.
Captjack "If we abided by that mantra, women wouldn't be allowed into Princeton and Barack Obama wouldn't have gone to Harvard."
Not a very good comparison. We're not talking about our rights to an education, we're talking about job qualifications and enforceable standards of performance.
Actually, getalife makes a really good point. What if I were a Hindu, and my religion prevents me from carrying a gun? Or perhaps I'm Rasta, and I need to light up at 8am every morning and 9, 10, 11, 12, 1, 2, 2:30, 3, 4:20, and so on? It's my religion. Should Metro accommodate me?
"Metro are idiots."
Somebody get a ticket recently? :)
.
I think if you read the story from 2007 "Police Test His Faith" linked to on the sidebar, you'll get a fuller picture and perhaps even agree with the ruling. If Metro had simply used some sense and allowed the original request they could have avoided a court case.
Sounds like the guy tried to go the easy way and wasn't allowed to. As for the Rasta concept, it wouldn't work, especially for cops. Getting high impairs you. While you can say that it gets you closer to god, it does impair vital faculties for a police officer, namely memory, speed, and reaction time.
This guy is just asking for a beard and a hat. Come on...
The amount of the settlement certainly isn't some precedent setting benchmark. The litigious nature of Americans ran amok years ago when common sense disappeared from the landscape, and juries started awarding people obscene amounts of cash for "slip & fall" crap etc. Lawsuits have become just another "get rich quick" scheme with lawyers lining up to line their pockets with ill-gotten cash.
That being said, here's another case where excersizing a little common sense (on BOTH sides) could have gone a long way, and Metro could have saved a lot of insurance money by doing so.
Getalife,
Hate to ruin your day, but you've obviously never heard of the karpan, or the two gun toting Sikh's who won a lawsuit against NYPD to keep their turbans, or the gun toting Sikh who works at the US/Canada border and was profiled on ABC. All three wear turbans, beards and guns and do a fine job interfacing with the public.
Same with the Hasidic Jews that work for NYPD. The idea that a beard is a hindrance to his professional standards is simply silly.
Comparing the detective to a Rastafarian is hyperbole. Beards are not illegal, but pot is. We're not talking about a guy who wants to take drugs and call it religion, we're talking about a f***ing hat.
And the Princeton/Harvard argument is completely valid. 20 years ago, women couldn't go to VMI. Then someone sued, people freaked out saying "rules are rules" and now women can enter the school. Today, Metro discriminates based on religion, someone sued, and maybe, just maybe, they'll be more accommodating in the future.
"Pretty tough to be a bartender if you are Mormon."
You have got to be kidding! Mormans are probably the biggest group who preach against one thing but enable it for those outside the group. They are more than happy to take money from the Gentiles by selling booze to them.
CaptJack, step away from the "jack", if this guy wants to be an individual he is in the wrong profession. Are you going to tell me that grooming standards in the military don't apply to the military.
boftx, OK, you're right the Mormon remark was goofy but I think you understood the point.
"Pretty tough to be a bartender if you are Mormon."
I missed that one... Again, horrendous logic used on that line -- absolutely apples and oranges.
Being Mormon does not preclude you from getting hired as a bartender. Avoiding "wine or strong drink" prevents you from performing your duties as a bartender. Having a beard does not impact your ability to write a ticket.
But there are Mormon bartenders and owners will hire them regardless of their faith. If anything, a bar owner would seek out teetotalers to avoid loss of inventory.
getalife,
He's not being an individual. He's conforming to the standards of his religion.
And yes, grooming standards in the military are fluid. You can apply for, and receive a shaving waiver in all branches of the military.
CaptJack, I don't know where you pulled your information about beards in the military, but you my friend are WRONG. The Navy doesn't allow beards due the firefighting face masks and the marines don't allow them due to gas masks.
Sorry, dude, try again.
"While you can say that it [pot] gets you closer to God, it does impair vital faculties for a police officer, namely memory, speed, and reaction time."
I was going to ask a question about this, but it took me so long to type it I can't remember what it was. I think ice cream will help me think of it.
FYI, the reason you stated is in fact the reason why Rasta's smoke it. They believe that when God returns, everyone will feel that way all the time. To them, pot is a preview of the rapture they imagine will happen and part of their typical rituals. Ya, well, I'm an informal Hindu/Buddhist, but um, maybe I could be convinced to convert. :) Listen to Bob Marley. His songs tell that story. Exodus, for example.
And to the person here who said "smoke pot and call it a Religion", Rastafarian is in fact a valid Religion, like all others. The pot part is no different than the Native Americans who smoke Peyote for nearly the same purpose, or the Hindus who smoke Hashish before spending three days building an entire temple to Shiva, just for one ritual, and then tear it all down. Yup. Cool stuff. Not always just about being a stoner, dude.
getalife,
Maybe you should try again, "2. SHAVING AND MUSTACHES (Men). The face shall be clean shaven unless a shaving waiver is authorized by the Commanding Officer per <BUPERSINST 1000.22>."
http://buperscd.technology.navy.mil/bup_...
Don't hurt yourself.
Johnvegas,
You're right, it's not all about being a stoner, but that's not what we're talking about. We're talking about a beard and a hat, not a drug that impairs your ability to think straight. It's not a valid comparison.
Pot is also illegal, no matter your religion.
"...that's not what we're talking about."
Sure it is. My point was, regardless of the incompatibility, he should have known better. Pot may be more obvious than a hat and beard, but the principle is the same. At least for me it is.
He should have known better? So the guy is never allowed to find God because he can't wear a hat and beard at work? This is what's so great about being human -- you learn and grow as you get older. The fact that this guy found something that he thinks will make his life better should be applauded.
But break down the argument: He cannot practice his flavor of religion because his employer's dress code will not allow it. The dress code is enforced to show uniformity to the public. The officer offers to work away from the public and is still declined, yet dress code waivers were approved to Christian officers to wear bible lapel pins.
Sorry, the beard does not hinder his ability to perform the job, dress code waivers have been offered to other police officers and other police departments have had no problems with religious, bearded officers.
He should have known better does not apply. Metro is trying to fill hundreds of police cars a year with capable officers and should not be excluding portions of the population based on their religion.
And the pot smoking is pure hyperbole, illogical and the principle is not the same. If an officer participates in an activity that is illegal, he should be fired. Wearing a beard is not illegal.
"Wearing a beard is not illegal."
I know. I was just amplifying the issue to make a point. It may have gotten lost in the dialog somewhere.
But, I'm still not on board with him not having to be accountable. This has the smell of a hot cup of McDonalds coffee between my legs. Well, not mine. But somebodys legs. Allison Krauss perhaps.
Man... as soon as I'm done at work today I'm running right out to 'buy' a beard and cap for work tomorrow, easy street here I come..... woo hoo!