Federal judge dismisses Muslim ‘clock boy’ lawsuit against Texas school district

Source: Federal judge dismisses ‘clock boy’ lawsuit | Daily Mail Online

A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by Ahmed Mohamed’s father, saying the family will not get a payout from the city of Irving, Texas or the school district for the ‘clock boy’ scandal, DailyMail.com has learned.

On September 14, 2015, 14-year-old Ahmed gained national attention when his high school teacher suspected he brought a bomb to school.

Ahmed was surprised and showed the teacher it was actually a homemade alarm clock. She told the Muslim teen she would keep it behind her desk for the rest of the day.

Later that day, the teacher called the police who arrested Ahmed at MacArthur High School.  Ahmed’s father, Mohamed Mohamed, claimed the officers were overly forceful in pulling him from his chair. He says they yanked his arms up and behind his back so far that his right hand touched the back of his neck.

Ahmed was booked, finger printed, interrogated and had his mugshot taken for the offense of a ‘hoax bomb’. The charges were later dropped.

Mohamed filed a Federal lawsuit against the City of Irving, Texas and Irving Independent School District accusing them of violating his son’s civil rights.

Court papers obtained by DailyMail.com reveal on May 18, a judge dismissed the entire case. The lawsuit sought unspecified compensatory and punitive damages along with attorney fees.

The judge wrote: ‘Plaintiff does not allege any facts from which this court can reasonably infer that any IISD employee intentionally discriminated against Ahmed Mohamed based on his race or religion.’

Further, he notes that the suit failed to identify any policy, custom, or practice of the City that was allegedly the moving force behind any violation of Ahmed’s Fifth Amendment rights.

When the lawsuit was first filed in 2016, the district hit back at the Mohamed family’s allegations saying Ahmed deliberately disobeyed his teacher by activating the clock despite her warning.

The judge said the  failed to allege any facts from which the court could reasonably conclude that Ahmed was discriminated against based on his race or religion.

The ruling said the suit had: ‘Absent allegations of intentional discrimination, or allegations from which the court can reasonably infer intentional discrimination, Plaintiff fails to allege an equal protection violation against the IISD.’

Prior to filing the most recent lawsuit, the family demanded $15 million dollars in damages in the months after the arrest.

Damages are only granted for intentional discrimination. Mohamed is allowed to file an amended complaint by June 1.