Shockley v. Adams

Q: What court decided Adams?

Shockley v. Adams was decided by the U.S. District Court in 2025.

Q: What is the citation for Adams?

The official citation for Shockley v. Adams is 4:25-cv-01513-SRC.

Q: What legal issues are involved in Adams?

Shockley v. Adams involves the following religious liberty issues: Free Exercise, Prison & Institutional Religion.

A state’s refusal to allow a death row inmate’s family members to serve as spiritual advisors in the execution chamber does not substantially burden religious exercise under RLUIPA when reasonable alternative accommodations are available.

ReligiousLiberty.TV

February 26, 2026

0 min read

Citation: 4:25-cv-01513-SRC Year: 2025 Court: U.S. District Court

Free Exercise Prison & Institutional Religion

Holding: A state's refusal to allow a death row inmate's family members to serve as spiritual advisors in the execution chamber does not substantially burden religious exercise under RLUIPA when reasonable alternative accommodations are available.

Uses AI to generate a structured summary. Takes ~10 seconds.

Official Documents

No official documents found yet.

Coverage on ReligiousLiberty.TV

📎 Document links found in our articles: 📄 opinion

Court Denies Lance Shockley’s Bid to Have Daughters Serve as Spiritual Advisors During Execution October 17, 2025

Referenced

Shockley v. Adams (4:25-cv-01513-SRC) is a Free Exercise case decided by the U.S. District Court in 2025. The court held that a state's refusal to allow a death row inmate's family members to serve as spiritual advisors in the execution chamber does not substantially burden religious exercise under RLUIPA when reasonable alternative accommodations are available.

1
Mahmoud v. Taylor606 U.S. 522 (2025)
3
U.S. Supreme Court
Parents have a fundamental right to direct the upbringing and medical care of their children without state interference.
📄 Opinion available
2
United States v. Don Lemon(2026)
2
U.S. District Court
Pending
The government indicted Don Lemon under the FACE Act for alleged coordination in disrupting religious worship, though judges…
3
Groff v. DeJoy600 U.S. 447 (2023)
2
U.S. Supreme Court
Employers cannot deny religious accommodation to workers unless it causes substantial increased costs or burdens on business operations.
📄 Opinion available
4
Bill 21 (Supreme Court of Canada Appeal)(2026)
2
U.S. Supreme Court
Pending
5
Troogstad v. City of Chicago25-1575 (2025)
2
Plaintiffs failed to demonstrate how a COVID-19 vaccine mandate burdened their specific religious practices under the Free Exercise…
📄 Opinion available
6
Wailes v. Jefferson County Public Schools(2025)
2
Remanded
District court dismissal of parents' challenge to school's policy of assigning students to overnight accommodations based on gender…
📄 Opinion available
7
Union Gospel Mission of Yakima Washington v. Nick Brown24-7246 (2026)
2
The First Amendment's church autonomy doctrine extends beyond the ministerial exception to protect a religious organization's decision to…
📄 Opinion available
8
Gilfillan v. City of Philadelphia637 F.2d 924 (1980)
2
Philadelphia violated the Establishment Clause by spending taxpayer funds to build a platform for a papal mass and…
📄 Opinion available
9
Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.573 U.S. 682 (2014)
2
U.S. Supreme Court
Religious liberty protections under RFRA apply to closely held for-profit corporations.
📄 Opinion available
10
We the Patriots USA, Inc. v. State of Connecticut Department of EducationHHD-CV-22-6152413-S (2025)
2
State Appellate Court
The court dismissed state constitutional claims based on sovereign immunity but allowed a statutory religious liberty claim under…