Utah hates to lose — especially when it comes to controlling access to plant medicine. But this time, they lost. And they lost big.
A federal judge, right here in Utah, ordered Provo Police Department and Utah County to return sacramental psilocybin mushrooms seized from Bridger Lee Jensen and Singularism — a small religious community quietly practicing within Utah County. These weren’t mushrooms from some black-market pop-up grow or basement operation. And Bridger isn’t some rogue dealer hiding behind religion. This was — and is — a functioning faith community, one not so different in spirit from Utah’s majority religion, just without the legal privileges.
For those of us who’ve followed this state’s long, weird relationship with plant medicine, this felt all too familiar. Cannabis went through it. CBD went through it. And now psilocybin and other psychedelics are next in line. Same script, same cheap tricks — raid first, worry about the law later.
Only this time, the courts didn’t play along.
From Raid to Reckoning
The raid happened quietly last year on November 11th — typical Utah style. Utah County authorities served a warrant on Singularism and seized psilocybin mushrooms used as part of its sacramental rites. Bridger Lee Jensen, the community’s steward and a familiar face in Utah’s psychedelic and cannabis reform circles, was immediately thrust into the center of a growing storm.
The state leaned hard on its controlled substances laws, conveniently ignoring the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), which, ironically, Utah often champions when politically convenient. Singularism filed a civil lawsuit to protect themselves, and on Friday, December 13th, 2024, Judge Jill Parrish issued a Temporary Restraining Order preventing further harassment while the case played out, and ordered the return of Singularism’s scriptures, and mushrooms.
So what did Utah County and Provo City do next? They doubled down. Officials filed retaliatory criminal charges against Jensen, despite the court already signaling the community had a strong religious freedom case. If you’ve followed Salt Baked City for a while, you already know this is classic Utah — try to bury the problem under procedural nonsense and hope no one notices.
The Judge Wasn’t Having It
On February 20th, 2025, Judge Jill Parrish issued a powerful Preliminary Injunction — reinforcing the TRO and, for a second time, ordering the return of the mushrooms and barring further interference. The ruling wasn’t vague or polite. It was a direct rebuke.
“It is ironic then that not long after enacting its RFRA to provide special protections for religious exercise, that the State of Utah should so vigorously deploy its resources, particularly the coercive power of its criminal-justice system, to harass and shut down a new religion it finds offensive practically without any evidence that that religion’s practices have imposed any harms on its own practitioners or anyone else.”
— Judge Jill Parrish, Preliminary Injunction, Jensen v. Utah County
If you’ve ever read court decisions, you know they’re rarely this sharp. The judge went even further, calling the state’s approach “offensively broad,” stating she was “mystified” by the prosecution’s strategy, and highlighting how Utah’s criminal justice system was deployed to “harass” Jensen and Singularism.
The court wasn’t just signaling sympathy — it flat-out said Jensen and Singularism are “substantially likely to prevail in the entire case” when it proceeds to trial.
Bridger Lee Jensen: More Than Just a Defendant
Let’s not forget — Bridger isn’t some outsider looking for attention. He’s been working inside Utah’s system for years, advocating for both clinical and religious rights to utilize entheogens. His fingerprints are all over Utah’s Psilocybin Recommendation Pilot Program (SB200) — a tightly controlled framework that aimed to allow patients with PTSD, end-of-life anxiety, and other conditions to access psilocybin through state-regulated pathways.
The pilot program came out of the same conversations Bridger helped lead. He wasn’t dodging the system; he was shaping it. And yet, while working to help Utah cautiously enter the next era of plant medicine, his own religious community was raided and dragged into court.
It’s hard to miss the hypocrisy. In 2024, Utah passed SB266, carving out exemptions for psilocybin research — but only for institutions like Intermountain Health and the University of Utah. At the same time, police are raiding religious communities like Singularism for practicing with the very same substance. Utah is simultaneously trying to roll out psilocybin access through the Department of Health, while criminalizing spiritual use outside the state’s control. Jensen argues that religious and secular organizations deserve the same exemptions — a claim the federal judge clearly agreed with. This is the definition of Utah’s double life — inviting reform in public while weaponizing enforcement behind the scenes.
Singularism: More Than Just a Name
Singularism isn’t some pop-up religion or underground club. It’s a structured spiritual practice that treats psilocybin not as a drug, but as a sacrament. Through carefully organized ceremonies, trained facilitators, and a focus on safe, ego-dissolving experiences, the community guides participants through what they describe as deeply personal, often life-changing journeys. Singularism teaches that psilocybin, when used with care and intention, opens pathways to understanding, healing, and connection — both with oneself and with the world. To date, Bridger’s team has facilitated more than 200 psilocybin sessions — a testament to the community’s experience and commitment to safe practice.
Unlike backyard shamans or psychedelic tourism, Singularism is deliberate. Every participant is screened, prepared, and supported before entering the ceremony. While the word “ceremony” might sound abstract to some, for Singularists it’s the cornerstone — blending ancient entheogenic tradition with modern legal protections under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Their approach is also clinically influenced, following protocols inspired by institutions like Johns Hopkins, Harvard Medical School, and Oregon state’s psychedelic guidelines. They aren’t hiding this work; they’re doing it as publicly, professionally, and lawfully as they can in Utah. Which is what makes the raid all the more absurd.
Utah’s Love-Hate Relationship with Religious Freedom
Anyone who’s lived in Utah for more than a minute knows the state loves to talk about religious liberty. But historically, that liberty hasn’t always extended beyond the dominant faith. The Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) gets waved around like a shield — until a less familiar religion actually tries to use it. Then suddenly, things get complicated.
But freedom for some is freedom for none — as the court made clear. The law doesn’t get to pick favorites. If you’re going to protect religious liberty, you have to protect all religious liberty — even when it’s uncomfortable, unfamiliar, or inconvenient. That principle helped shape this state’s founding, and it’s being tested again now with Singularism.
“The unlawful misconduct of Defendants was objectively unreasonable, flagrantly unlawful, and undertaken intentionally with willful indifference to Plaintiffs’ rights,” said Singularism attorney Tanner Bean, calling out the state’s repeated and intentional violations of RFRA.
At the center of it all is Utah County Attorney Jeffrey S. Gray, whose office authorized the raid on Bridger Lee Jensen’s community and later filed retaliatory criminal charges — even after Judge Parrish had already raised serious constitutional concerns. The judge didn’t mince words — describing the state’s actions as “offensively broad,” driven by harassment, and cloaked in the thin justification of law enforcement.
Prosecutors, police, and city officials were called out for forum shopping, intimidation, and what amounts to religious discrimination masquerading as drug enforcement. Gray’s office, along with Davis County and Provo City, now find themselves part of a precedent-setting case — one that’s forcing Utah to reckon with its selective interpretation of religious freedom.
A Familiar Pattern for Plant Medicine Advocates
If you think you’ve seen this movie before, you have. Cannabis patients remember when the state legalized medical use but still handed out possession charges like candy. Utahns were sitting in jail and courtrooms for archaic cannabis crimes while politicians posed for ribbon-cutting ceremonies.
What’s happening now is psilocybin’s version of that same old story.
Utah lawmakers claimed the state wasn’t ready for a tightly regulated psilocybin program — shooting down SB200 for being too complex and rule-heavy. But just a year later, they passed SB266, quietly granting wide-open access to psilocybin for two institutions: Intermountain Health and the University of Utah. No guardrails, no rules — just permission. Meanwhile, law enforcement is still raiding spiritual communities for doing the same thing. The message is clear: in Utah, access to psychedelics is reserved for the powerful. But that message isn’t landing like it used to.
Why This Case Matters for Utah’s Future
Judge Parrish’s ruling didn’t just protect Bridger Lee Jensen and Singularism. It exposed, on record, the contradiction at the heart of Utah’s approach to psychedelics — and to religious freedom. This wasn’t just sloppy enforcement. The court said, flat out, that Utah’s government acted with willful indifference and likely broke both federal and state laws.
This case has implications far beyond a box of mushrooms. It strikes at the heart of who gets access to healing in Utah. Bridger Lee Jensen isn’t just fighting for himself — he says he’s doing this for the entire community, working to ensure that anyone seeking spiritual or therapeutic relief through psilocybin has a safe and legal path forward. The outcome of this case will shape how Utah handles religious freedom, psychedelic access, and enforcement priorities for years to come — and whether future patients, seekers, and faith communities will have to fight the same battle all over again.
Even if Utah appeals (and you know they will), Singularism and Bridger Lee Jensen have already set a new precedent with this landmark ruling. The questions have been asked. And the state’s old “raid and pray no one notices” approach just got slapped by a federal judge.
“This victory is a win for religious freedom, not just in Utah but across the country.” — Singularism
We’ve Seen This Before — And We’ll See It Again
For better or worse, this is how progress looks in Utah. First cannabis, now psilocybin. Same song, different verse.
At Salt Baked City, we’ve been watching this play out for years — in courtrooms, committee hearings, pharmacy parking lots, and patient living rooms. We know how this story usually goes. But this time, it might be different. This time, there’s a court record.
But court records aren’t enough. Cases like this take time, resources, and community support. If you believe in the right to spiritual healing, and in the future of safe, intentional psychedelic therapy, consider helping fund the fight. Singularism is accepting donations to support the legal battle — because this isn’t just about mushrooms, it’s about access, equality, and protecting the path forward. Learn more by visiting singularism.org.
