Ahmed Mohamed, the 14-year-old son of Muslim immigrants from Sudan, became a media sensation last year after he was arrested for bringing a weird homemade clock to school.
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Police in Irving, Texas, eventually admitted, Ahmed Mohamed had only built a clock, out of his interest for electrical engineering.
Ahmed Mohamed, the 14-year-old son of a Sudanese immigrant who has since moved his family to Qatar, claims in the lawsuit that he was the victim of biased treatment since his arrival in Irving, Texas, as a Muslim third grader, including being singled out for discipline.
“A law firm representing Ahmed Mohamed sent letters in November of previous year demanding $10 million from the city of Irving and $5 million from the Irving Independent School District”.
The lawsuit also cites a pattern of disproportionate disciplinary action for black students in the Irving Independent School District along with a history of anti-Muslim sentiment.
A few months after the incident, Ahmed and his family moved to Qatar after the teen accepted an offer from the Qatar Foundation to study at its Young Innovators Program.
Specifically, the lawsuit – filed in the name of Ahmed and his father, Mohamed Elhassan Mohamed – is targeting the Irving Independent School District, MacArthur principal Daniel Cummings and the city of Irving. Here’s what to know about his story so far.
Ahmed said he and his family plan to return to Qatar, where he will finish high school, because they have received death threats and hate mail. “The failure of officials to provide training to officers after such incidents “[led] Irving police officers to arrest Ahmed Mohamed without probable cause”. The officers were well aware that the home-made clock was not a bomb, as indicated by their actions in plugging it in and keeping it in the room with them for nearly an hour and a half while they interrogated Ahmed. This suit did not provide specific monetary demands, only requesting a trial by jury.
At the height of the controversy, Ahmed’s family threatened to sue the city of Irving for $15 million in damages.
“I lost my creativity, because before I used to love building things”, he said, adding that while visiting his former Texas hometown, he wears a hooded sweatshirt, glasses and hat to disguise his appearance out of fear for his safety. I can’t walk out of the house without being covered up because I might get shot because that happens here.
“In the case of Ahmed Mohamed, we have the opportunity to take a stand for equality and for justice, two things that should prevail above all else”. His father is a an immigrant from Sudan who became a USA citizen.
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Representatives for Irving ISD said in a written statement that district administrators are aware of the suit, and district attorneys will respond to the suit’s claims after they review it.
