The U.S. Supreme Court, in a unanimous (8-0) opinion, ruled Thursday that three Muslim men placed on the no-fly list after refusing to act as FBI informants can sue federal officials for money damages under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. None of the men was suspected of illegal activity, and indeed the government tried to head off the suit by removing their names from the no-fly list just days before the case first went to court. It didn't work. The men refused to drop their case, and on Thursday the Supreme Court ruled unanimously in their favor.
The court noted that money damages have long been authorized in American law, dating back to the founding of the republic. Specifically, a post-Civil War statute provides for damages against government officials who act "under color of state law" to deprive people of their constitutional rights. The Religious Freedom Restoration Act, enacted in 1993, is in that tradition and uses the same terminology, the court observed. The court acknowledged that Congress is free to shield government agents from suit, but "[w]e cannot manufacture" such a presumption 27 years later.
While the court's decision was unanimous, it was heard before Justice Amy Coney Barrett was confirmed as the newest justice, and she did not participate in the ruling.