Employment Division v. Smith

The Employment Division v. Smith case involved two Native Americans who used a banned psychedelic drug as part of their religious rituals. When they were fired from their jobs for using the drug, they sought unemployment benefits, but the state denied them, citing their drug use as misconduct. The key legal question was whether states could enforce neutral laws that incidentally affected religious practices. The Supreme Court ruled that states can prohibit the use of certain substances regardless of religious intent, as long as the law is generally applied and not specifically targeting religion. This decision limited the scope of protections for religious practices under the First Amendment.