This lawsuit charges two Aurora police officers with racial profiling for forcibly removing Omar Hassan, a Black man, from an Aurora coffee shop.  He had done nothing wrong. Mr. Hassan had just finished a night shift at work when he stopped at the Caribou Coffee outlet in east Aurora.  He was dressed in a hooded sweatshirt, sweatpants, and work boots.  The two officers named in the ACLU’s lawsuit followed Mr. Hassan to his table, stood directly over him with their hands on their guns, and ordered him to leave.  When Mr. Hassan asked why, Officer Williby responded “Your kind of business is not welcome here.”  According to the lawsuit, the officers were acting on their own.  The coffee shop’s manager had received no complaints about Mr. Hassan and had not asked police to evict him. The litigation ended with a settlement that awarded monetary compensation to Mr. Hassan.

ACLU Press Releases:

Media:

Attorney(s)

Adam Stern, Rebecca Wallace; Arash Jahanian; Mark Silverstein

Case number

17-cv-02335