Baltimore Paramedic Alleges Religious Discrimination Over Sabbath and Holiday Observance

A Baltimore City Fire Department paramedic has filed a federal lawsuit alleging religious discrimination and failure to accommodate his religious observance, naming the Baltimore City Fire Department and the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore City as defendants.

According to the complaint, the plaintiff, Ariel Rice, is a Medic 27 employed by the Baltimore City Fire Department (BCFD). He identifies as an Orthodox, Sabbath-observant Jew and alleges that his religious beliefs prohibit him from working from sundown Friday to shortly after sundown Saturday, as well as on certain Jewish holidays. The complaint states that BCFD has been aware of his religious observance since at least April 2024, when he notified the department’s human resources leadership.

The dispute centers on Mr. Rice’s request for religious accommodation related to the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah in October 2024, which coincided with the Sabbath. The complaint alleges that Mr. Rice first requested accommodation in August 2024 and provided supporting documentation shortly thereafter. He claims he received no response until September 26, 2024, when he was informed that the department’s practice for such situations was “shift swapping.”

Through counsel, Mr. Rice responded that federal law required the department to engage in an interactive process to identify a reasonable accommodation and that directing him to arrange his own shift swaps was insufficient. The complaint further alleges that department representatives provided outdated or inapplicable accommodation policies before ultimately denying the request on October 2, 2024, the eve of Rosh Hashanah.

The denial letter cited operational concerns, stating that the request created an undue hardship for a “24/7 safety-sensitive” fire department due to staffing needs and patient safety considerations. The only accommodation allegedly offered was allowing Mr. Rice to attempt to arrange his own shift swaps or to use vacation time for a day shift that did not conflict with his religious observance.

Unable to secure shift swaps, Mr. Rice did not report for his scheduled night shifts on October 3 and October 4, 2024, which fell during Rosh Hashanah and the Sabbath. As a result, the complaint alleges that he was marked absent without leave (AWOL), suspended, and later formally charged with departmental rule violations. Following a disciplinary hearing, one charge was dismissed, but disciplinary points equivalent to a four-day suspension were imposed, with two additional unpaid suspension days ordered.

Mr. Rice subsequently filed a charge of religious discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which was referred to the Baltimore City Community Relations Commission (BCCRC). In June 2025, after an investigation, the BCCRC issued a preliminary finding of probable cause, concluding that Mr. Rice made timely and sincere accommodation requests and that BCFD relied on shift swapping without conducting an individualized assessment. The preliminary determination noted that generalized claims of undue hardship were not supported by a case-specific analysis.

The complaint alleges that, months later, the BCCRC issued a final determination of no probable cause without explanation. Mr. Rice also claims that the disciplinary points imposed for the Rosh Hashanah absence later triggered additional suspension time when he received unrelated discipline in September 2025.

The lawsuit further alleges that BCFD permits other employees to “self-swap” shifts but does not allow Mr. Rice to do so for religious observance. Quoting from the complaint:

• Defendants permit EMTs to “self-swap,” i.e., simply make up their shift on another day when, for example, they must miss a shift for a paramedic class.
• Yet Defendants do not permit Mr. Rice to “self-swap” in order to observe the Sabbath or Jewish holidays.

The complaint asserts that the department failed to provide reasonable accommodation, failed to engage in an interactive process as required by Groff v. DeJoy, 600 US 447 (2023), subjected him to discipline for observing his faith, and treated religious leave requests less favorably than other forms of leave.

Mr. Rice’s complaint asserts claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 for religious discrimination and failure to accommodate. He seeks injunctive relief, back pay, compensatory damages, removal of disciplinary references from his personnel record, accommodation of his Sabbath and holiday observance, and attorney’s fees.