Hebshi and 2 Indian American men were detained for hours.
AB Wire
WASHINGTON, DC: The federal government will pay $40,000 to Shoshana Hebshi, a freelance journalist of Arab and Jewish descent, to settle a lawsuit filed on behalf of her by the American civil Liberties Union, for a discriminatory strip search at Detroit Metro Airport, on September 11, 2011.
Hebshi, of Sylvania, Ohio, will receive $40,000 from the federal government as compensation for being humiliated, reported CBS. Frontier Airlines, the Transportation Security Administration and the Wayne County Airport Authority were named in the federal lawsuit.
The ACLU said Frontier also agreed to amend its employee handbook to more clearly state its zero-tolerance policy on discrimination.
Hebshi, mother of two, was traveling alone from Denver to Detroit on September 11, 2011. She was seated next to two Indian American men, whom she did not know, when passengers on board became concerned with the trio, in part, due to heightened concerns surrounding the 9/11 anniversary, reported CBS and the Associated Press.
When the flight landed, armed agents boarded the flight and took her and the two men off the plane at gunpoint.
“She was put in handcuffs and then they throw her in a jail cell and then they send somebody in to strip search her, to take all of her clothes off,” said ACLU Michigan legal director Michael Steinberg.
Hebshi said she was then question for about four hours before she was released without explanation. She believes she was ethnically profiled based on her dark complexion.
The Chicago Tribune reports during the flight, the Frontier crew found the actions of the two men seated next to Shoshana suspect as the men had used the restroom too frequently. Upon landing in the Detroit-area, the two Indian American men and Hebshi were detained by airport officials for hours.
According to ABC News, it was noted in the lawsuit that both the Indian American men were also released after being detained for hours.
In a release issued Tuesday, the Wayne County Airport Authority stated that its insurer agreed to the settlement to avoid “further time-consuming and costly litigation.”
The authority further stated that “no wrongdoing was found or admitted by any party,” in this case, and that the resolution of this case will help airport officials to continue to focus on operating safe, secure, and efficient air transportation facilities.”
“On September 11, 2011, our internationally accredited police department, working with our federal law enforcement partners, acted quickly and responsibly, and followed appropriate protocols in responding to a request for help from one of our airline partners,” said CEO Thomas Naughton. “I strongly support their actions. We remain committed to vigilantly protecting the safety of the travelling public – our number one priority.”
Frontier Airlines declined to comment, reported CBS.
“I filed this lawsuit because I didn’t want others to experience the kind of unnecessary trauma that I did, and it has given me faith that the justice system can work to protect constitutional rights,” Hebshi said in a release, according to the Associated Press. “This settlement gives me some peace of mind. Now, I feel like I can finally put the incident behind me.”