(ATLANTA, GA, 3/10/26) – The Georgia chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-Georgia), alongside civil rights attorneys Gerry Weber and James Slater, today announced the filing of a federal lawsuit against Bartow County Sheriff Clark Millsap and detention officer “Jane Doe.” The suit challenges the forced removal of Plaintiff Ivana Elliott’s hijab, or Islamic headscarf, and the severe violation of her religious and civil rights.
The complaint details that on April 6, 2025, Bartow County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) staff ignored
Elliott’s religious objections and forced her to remove her hijab and undercap in front of male officers. Despite her repeated protests, the BCSO officers continued to force the exposure of her hair and body during Elliott’s 32-hour detainment. Male officers also subjected Elliott to a strip search and threatened her with a taser for alleged noncompliance.
The physical force and compelled exposure caused Elliott physical injuries, recurrent panic attacks, and severe psychological trauma requiring treatment. Compounding this harm, BCSO forced Elliott to submit to a booking photograph without her headscarf, which remains in official databases accessible to local, state, and other government agencies, as well as to the public via Georgia Open Records Act requests. CAIR-Georgia and co-counsel argue this retention constitutes an ongoing violation of Elliott’s sincerely held religious beliefs under the First Amendment and the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA).
In a statement, CAIR-GA Civil Rights Staff Attorney Keon Grant said:
“Our laws are clear: people’s religious rights don’t just disappear at arrest, and people don’t surrender their faith at booking. By filing this lawsuit, CAIR-Georgia aims to ensure that no individual is forced to endure the pain, humiliation, violation of religious beliefs, and degradation that Miss Elliott did at the hands of BCSO. Every day that Miss Elliot’s photo without her hijab is accessible is another day that her religious freedoms and civil rights are violated, and the injury initiated on April 6, 2025, is perpetuated.”
Co-Counsel Attorney Gerry Weber stated:
“We seek, what our Constitution requires, free exercise of religion. Religious freedom does not end at the prison gates and is so important for reformation of incarcerated persons.”
Co-Counsel Attorney James Slater said:
“We are committed to holding the Bartow County Sheriff and his staff accountable for flagrant violations of our client’s religious freedoms while she was detained at the Bartow County Jail. With this lawsuit, we hope to right the injustices against our client and ensure that this never happens again.”
CAIR-Georgia and co-counsel are requesting the court to declare that the forced removal of Elliott’s hijab violated her First Amendment and RLUIPA rights, mandate BCSO implement policy changes to prohibit officers and staff from taking booking photographs of Muslim women without their hijab, and order officers and staff to honor requests to be searched and/or stripped privately using female officers when possible.
Washington, D.C., based CAIR offers a booklet, “A Law Enforcement Official’s Guide to The Muslim Community,”designed to assist law enforcement officials in forming and implementing policies to create a culturally aware environment and cooperative relationship between American Muslims and law enforcement agencies.
CAIR-Georgia’s mission is to protect civil rights, promote justice, empower American Muslims, and enhance the understanding of Islam.
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CONTACT: Azka Mahmood, CAIR-Georgia Executive Director, [email protected], Nazia Khanzada, Communications Manager CAIR-Georgia, [email protected], Aaron Butler, CAIR-Georgia Managing Attorney, [email protected], Keon Grant, CAIR-Georgia Staff Attorney, [email protected]