Appeals Court Revives Ex-Jail Official’s Religious Bias Suit

A former jail administrator can continue pursuing claims that an Iowa county unlawfully fired him over online expressions of his religious beliefs, a federal appeals court said.

The US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit said Tuesday there’s a genuine dispute of material fact about whether continuing Dean Naylor’s employment would cause undue hardship for Muscatine County. The appeals court reversed the lower court’s grant of summary judgment to the county and sent the case back to the US District Court for the Southern District of Iowa for further proceedings.