Ahmed Mohammed, whose arrest in Irving, Texas, in 2015 for allegedly bringing a bomb to school initiated a national race relations rhapsody, has brought a lawsuit against his former school district, seeking damages for discrimination and constitutional violations.
The Mohamed family, who now lives in Qatar, retained the Dallas firm Hutchison and Stoy to bring a claim against the Irving Independent School District in June. They allege racial and religious discrimination on the part of the district against Ahmed, and claim his Fourth Amendment rights were infringed when authorities questioned him for over an hour and a half without the presence of his parents. The claim alleges a long history of racial and religious discrimination in Irving schools.
The brief names Ahmed’s middle school vice principal, Mr. Nguyen, as a regular purveyor of abuse. Mohamed’s lawyers claim Nguyen obstinately targeted Ahmed for discipline, often on unreasonable grounds. They further claim Nguyen forced Ahmed to submit letters from his father and from his mosque before excusing him from lunch to fulfill his religious obligation to pray. A previous complaint alleges Nguyen upbraided African American and Hispanic students to behave more like his Asian children. The school’s history teacher, Ralph Kubiak, corroborates that Nguyen targeted Ahmed throughout his tenure.
The filing also claims other students referred to Ahmed as “bacon boy” and “sausage boy.”
The Mohamed’s also name the school’s principal, Daniel Cummings, in the lawsuit. The argue Cummings violated the Fourteenth Amendment and the Texas Family Code by failing to promptly notify Ahmed’s parents after he was detained by police, for participating in an illegal interrogation, for attempting to force Ahmed to sign a statement confessing his wrongdoing, and for awarding a three-day suspension when the investigation was concluded.
Ahmed’s experience ignited a social media zeitgeist that peaked when he visited the White House for an astronomy night hosted by President Obama.
The lawsuit does not include an exact dollar amount sought in damages. The family previously demanded a $15 million settlement. (RELATED: Clock Boy Is Back, And His Lawyers Want $15 Million From The Gov’t)
The U.S. Department of Justice is also investigating the Irving School District for civil rights abuses.
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