The arguably defunct Church of Body Modification has been dealt another blow, this time by a federal appellate court in Massachusetts, which rejected a religious discrimination claim against a store with no-piercing dress code.

Kimberly Cloutier, a clerk at the West Springfield Costco store and self-professed member of the Church, was fired for refusing to remove an eyebrow ring pursuant to the retail chain's published employee dress regulations, which ban visible facial piercings. She subsequently brought legal action against the company, claiming that the store's unwillingness to completely exempt her from the policy amounted to unlawful religious discrimination, in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Avoiding the "thorny issue" of whether the Church is a bona fide religion and whether Cloutier's refusal to wear clear plastic retainers in her facial piercings or else cover them with band-aids was legitimately based on her religious or spiritual beliefs (questions over which the lower district court had expressed serious doubt), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit held on December 1 that Costco's interest in the appearance of its front-line employees and Cloutier's unwillingness to compromise outweighed whatever protected religious interest she had under the Act:

The court also held that a similar claim under Massachusetts law lacked merit.

The full opinion is available at Cloutier v. Costco Wholesale Corp., No. 04-1475 (1st Cir. Dec. 1, 2004).