Indian Doctor May Sue Over False Detention

September 19, 2002

Source: The Philadelphia Inquirer

http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/4102992.htm

On September 19, 2002 The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that "unknown to most passengers on the Atlanta-to-Philadelphia flight, the marshals upon landing... seized an Indian passenger from first class and silently whisked him away in handcuffs. Far from being a terror suspect, the second detainee turned out to be a former U.S. Army major and military doctor from Lake Worth, Fla., where he has had a family practice for two decades... Yesterday, suggesting that the line between security and civil-rights violations is blurring, the physician, Bob Rajcoomar, filed notice in U.S. District Court that he may sue the U.S. government for illegal detention and emotional distress. His wife had been left to wander the Philadelphia airport for three hours during his detention, never told of his whereabouts."