Muslim woman sues jail for making her attend Christian prayer meetings

oge okonkwo

December 23, 2014 9:04 PM

Majeed claimed the corrections officers forced her to attend church service every Friday, threatening to put her in solitary confinement if she refused

A Muslim woman is suing a jail in Ohio for forcing her to attend a Christian prayer service while she was in prison.

24-year-old Sakeena Majeed was put behind bars in a Cuyahoga County Corrections Center for 60 days in April after having an altercation with a police officer in Cleveland.

Majeed had pleaded pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault after having an argument with a police officer.

Reports say Majeed claimed the corrections officers forced her to attend church service every Friday that were held by a baptist minister, threatening to put her in solitary confinement if she refused.

Majeed says she told the officers numerous times that she was a practicing Muslim, claiming that they 'openly chastised and mocked' her beliefs.

Her lawyer, Matthew Besser, said he is investigating the jail's policies, what activities are considered mandatory, and why.

'At this point, it’s too early to know exactly how widespread the practice is, and has been, and whether it had occurred in other portions of the jail,' Besser told the Los Angeles Times.

'The only evidence I have here is that it occurred in the trustee pod.

'Our understanding is all the inmates in the pod were forced to go, some were willing and happy to go, and others less so.'

Majeed is seeking unspecified damages and the lawsuit saying her constitutional rights were violated.

Officials from Cuyahoga County hare yet to comment on the lawsuit.

oge okonkwo