California County Will Accommodate Muslim Women On Headscarves In Arrests

AP reported yesterday that San Bernardino County, California has settled a lawsuit brought by a Muslim woman who claimed her religious freedom was violated after her arrest when deputies required her to remove her hijab (headscarf). Under the settlement announced Monday, Muslim women who are arrested must be provided a private area to remove their headscarves and be provided with county-issued ones for use when they are in the presence of men. The suit was filed last December by the ACLU on behalf of Muslim Ph.D. student Jameelah Medina who was arrested-- but never charged-- when she was discovered to be riding a Los Angeles commuter train without a valid ticket. (See prior posting.) [Thanks to Blog from the Capital for the lead.]