Muslim woman mistaken for terrorist sues Chicago officers

According to police, Al Matar was ordered to stop, and did not – causing the police to believe that she “might be a lone wolf suicide bomber”. She was walking up the steps to the State/Lake station in the Loop when a group of five officers knocked her down from behind, grabbed her bags, hit her, kicked her, and ripped off her hijab.

Regardless of the explanation, Al-Matar was charged, including with obstructing justice after police accused her of resisting and refusing to comply with orders.

On Thursday, Al Matar filed a federal lawsuit against the city and six police officers, accusing the police of excessive force, unlawful search, false arrest, violation of religious freedoms, and malicious prosecution. “She made the choice to cover her body, and someone came along and exposed her in this violent manner”.

According to the lawsuit, Al Matar was strip-searched and photographed after she was arrested. She was acquitted on all charges at a state trial earlier this year.

Itemid Al-Matar, 32, was observing Ramadan, a holy month of fasting in Islam.

They also wrote that she was “furiously clutching her backpack and appeared to be trying to reach for something”.

A police spokesman declined to comment specifically on the suit, saying the department doesn’t comment on pending litigation. The Chicago Police Department said it is aware of the lawsuit but its policy does not allow them to comment on pending litigation or lawsuits. “I think that it brings to the forefront the attention that the Chicago Police Department needs some sensitivity training”, Kulis said.

The fact that Al-Matar was wearing a headscarf, known as a hijab, and the face veil, called a niqab, “was the impetus behind the actions” of the officers, the court filing alleges. The report says that Al Matar “pulled away” and ignored verbal instruction before they tackled her.

“We believe that she was charged falsely as a cover-up for the police actions”, Rehab said by telephone.

Reuters was not immediately able to obtain a copy of the police report.

“The City of Chicago has a duty and obligation to supervise, discipline and train its officers to prevent them from violating citizens’ rights through the power and authority they have”, the complaint says, adding that Al-Matar’s rights were violated in a “long standing climate of the Chicago Police Department violating citizens’ rights”.

“As far as we’re concerned, policing ought to be concerned with criminal behavior and violations of the law, not with the way people dress or the color of their skin”, said Rehab. According to a police report filed the night of the incident, officers had been instructed to be on “high alert of terrorist activity”.