Appeals court hears arguments of Texas inmate demanding kosher food

JTA — A US appeals court heard oral arguments in the case of a Texas prison inmate who is demanding kosher food.

Attorneys for Max Moussazadeh, who is serving a 75-year sentence for a 1993 murder, made their case Monday before a three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans.

After Moussazadeh filed a 2005 federal lawsuit complaining that the prison system did not provide kosher food, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice started a kosher food program at one of its prisons, and transferred Moussazadeh and the other prisoners requesting a kosher diet there.

But Moussazadeh was transferred later to a high-security prison that does not provide free kosher meals, though he can purchase them from the commissary.

The court likely will rule on the case in several months.