Ali Baydoun (C), a mentally disabled Dearborn man, filed a lawsuit against Dearborn Police in 2014 for use of excessive force

DEARBORN – The case of Kevin Matthew isn’t the first time the Dearborn Police Department has come under fire for its handling of subjects with a mental disability. 

Despite the majority of the Arab American community appearing un-phased by the Kevin Matthew case, in 2014 the community was outraged with how Dearborn police officers handled the arrest of then 28-year-old Ali Baydoun, who suffered from a mental disability.

Dash-cam footage released to the public showed multiple police officers using excessive force towards Baydoun when he appeared suspicious, riding his bicycle home from work early one morning. 

After multiple officers wrestled with Baydoun for a few minutes, they detained him. He was never booked or charged with a crime. Instead, he was taken to Oakwood Hospital to receive treatment for injuries he sustained during the altercation.

The Law Office of Cyril Hall represented Baydoun’s case, filing a lawsuit against the police department in U.S. District Court. 

Baydoun’s attorney, Amir Makled, told The Arab American News that the case is still in the discovery stage, as they had to defer to the probate court during the lawsuit to have a guardian appointed for Baydoun, due to his mental disability. 

Makled said they are still moving forward with the case and that he’s disappointed that the police department has not engaged in any discussions in trying to resolve the matter. The law firm is also unclear as to what protocols the department has in place for subjects who suffer from a mental disorder.

 “It’s apparent to me that they aren’t following proper policing procedures if situations like this keep happening,” Makled said. “The city should do the right thing and try to resolve this case with us, but there have been no discussions.” 

Makled said the law firm routinely receives complaints regarding officer misconduct in Dearborn. He said Muslim women who are detained continue to allege that the police department forces them to remove their hijabs during the booking process. 

In the neighboring city of Dearborn Heights, new protocols have been put in place for Muslim women who are arrested, but Makled said those practices don’t seem to be happening in Dearborn. 

 “In terms of Dearborn police, at times they are overzealous,” Makled said. “It may be putting them in a position where they find themselves in trouble. It’s important they remember their basic training. When they are on the road, they need to refresh their education in terms of what is proper policing. Police misconduct is a serious topic and it’s a serious violation of civil rights towards citizens. No citizens should be concerned about their safety when it comes to dealing with law enforcement.”

However, despite the road bumps the police department has had with the Arab and Muslim communities, relations seem to have progressed in many areas in recent years.

Residents and civil rights groups had demanded more diversity on the police force, an objective that seems to be transpiring under Police Chief Ron Haddad, who has hired a string of Arab American officers into the department, as well as hired officers who have lived in the city and are more culturally in-tune. 

But with the incident with Matthew, the police department once again finds itself in the middle of a racial firestorm, this time with a community that has little to no representation in the city of Dearborn. 

While the city has very few African American residents, Dearborn businesses and colleges do attract a significant number of Detroit residents, including Fairlane Town center and Wal-Mart. 

Rev. Charles Williams, president of the Detroit Action Network, is now calling for a boycott against the city.

 “Until we get justice, we will not be coming to Dearborn no more,” Williams said. “Fairlane, bye- bye, Benihana’s bye-bye …. We will not allow our dollars to be spent in a place that doesn’t respect us.”