Farag v. United States
United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York
587 F. Supp. 2d 436 (2008)
Tarik Farag and Amro Elmasry (plaintiffs), both Arab men (one a U.S. citizen, the other holding a valid visa), were pulled off a flight in New York by more than ten armed officers, handcuffed, and jailed for four hours on suspicion of terrorist surveillance, based on behavior like checking their watches and sitting near each other as friends. No evidence of criminal activity was found. They sued FBI Agent Plunkett and Detective Smith (defendants) under Bivens, and the agents moved for summary judgment on qualified immunity, listing the men's in-flight behavior as the basis for probable cause.
Whether race or ethnicity may be considered in establishing probable cause to detain an individual under the Fourth Amendment.