DALLAS _ The father of Ahmed Mohamed, the 14-year-old Muslim student dubbed "Clock Boy" after photos of his arrest at MacArthur High School in Irving, Texas, went viral, filed a lawsuit Monday accusing the Irving Independent School District, the city of Irving and Mohamed's former principal of violating his son's civil rights.
The Hutchison & Stoy law firm of Fort Worth is representing Mohamed's father, Mohamed Elhassan, in the suit. Lead attorneys Susan Hutchison and Christopher Stoy announced the suit in a news conference Monday morning at the Bank of America Plaza in Dallas. Mohamed and his father were in attendance.
Hutchison said in a written statement that Mohamed's treatment represented a "blatant disregard" for his civil rights.
"In the case of Ahmed Mohamed," the suit says, "we have the opportunity to take a stand for equality and for justice, two things that should prevail above all else."
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.
"Irving ISD continues to deny violating the student's rights and will respond to claims in accordance with court rules," the statement said. "Because this matter is now in litigation, Irving ISD officials will have no further comment at this time. Irving ISD employees are focused on welcoming 35,000 students for the 2016-2017 academic year and doing everything possible to ensure each student is achieving his or her maximum potential."
Elhassan's suit alleges Mohamed's civil rights were violated last September after Irving police mistook a homemade clock Mohamed had brought to school for a bomb.
Both police and MacArthur High School Principal Daniel Cummings interrogated Mohamed about the clock for more than an hour and prohibited him from having his parents present.
Irving police eventually arrested Mohamed on charges of possession of a hoax bomb. The charges were dropped, but he was suspended from MacArthur High for three days.
The suit alleges Mohamed was discriminated against based on his race and religion and that his Fourth Amendment rights were violated when he was interrogated by police and Cummings.
Mohamed and his family moved to Qatar in October, but the family returned to Irving in June for the summer.
"Will we be faithful to our American principles of equality and freedom or will we let fear and hate prevail, the two biggest evils that will defeat our democracy?" the suit asks. "History tells us that when we have stood tall and proud for equality and freedom, we have grown as a nation. When we have given in to fear and hate, we flounder."
