Supreme Court won't hear Ohio man's Amish hair-cutting case

FILE - In this Oct. 10, 2011, file photo, Samuel Mullet Sr. stands in front of his home in Bergholz, Ohio. The U.S. Supreme Court decided Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2017, not to review Mullet's conviction as leader of a breakaway group prosecuted for hair- and beard-cutting attacks on fellow Amish in 2011, and serving a nearly 11-year sentence in federal prison in Elkton, Ohio. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta, File) (The Associated Press)

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Supreme Court won't review the case of the Ohio leader of a breakaway group that was accused in hair- and beard-cutting attacks on fellow Amish.

Defense lawyers challenged the constitutionality of the federal hate crimes law, and how a kidnapping allegation was used to stiffen the sentence for 71-year-old Samuel Mullet Sr. He petitioned the Supreme Court after a federal court rejected his appeal last May.

Mullet's attorney, Ed Bryan, tells Cleveland.com (http://bit.ly/2l3bhyc ) he's disappointed the high court has decided not to take up the case.

Prosecutors said some victims in the 2011 attacks were restrained as others cut their hair and beards, which have spiritual significance in the Amish faith.

Mullet received an 11-year sentence and is the only one of the 16 defendants still in prison.