US Muslim woman sues police for removing her headscarf
A Muslim woman launched a legal action on Monday against police in California that her headscarf was forcibly removed after she was arrested on outstanding warrants.
A Muslim woman launched a legal action on Monday against police in California that her headscarf was forcibly removed after she was arrested on outstanding warrants.
According to the complaint against the city of Long Beach and its police department, Kirsty Powell and her husband were pulled over by two officers while driving home in May of last year, Powell, who is African American, says: that while being booked at the police station, one of the officers forcibly removed her headscarf in view of other male officers and inmates, telling her she was “not allowed to wear her hijab” and that policemen were “allowed to touch women.”
The suit states that Powell “suffered and continues to suffer extreme shame, humiliation, mental anguish and emotional distress” as a result of her experience.
“The actions taken by the Long Beach police officers were unwarranted and a serious violation of Mrs Powell’s bodily integrity,” said Yalda Satar, attorney for the Los Angeles chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which filed the suit on behalf of Powell.
