Visitor from UAE victim of false terrorism allegations at west side hotel
Background
Ahmed Al Menhali, a resident of the UAE, was visiting Cleveland for medical treatment at the Cleveland Clinic in 2016. When he walked into the Fairfield Inn and Suites in Avon looking to rent a hotel room, he had no idea that the front desk clerk and manager were profiling him based on his traditional dress and that he was speaking Arabic on the telephone. The hotel clerk asked her family to call 911 to report that Al Menhali was pledging allegiance to ISIS, which was patently untrue. As a result of this false allegation, SWAT arrived and seized Al Menhali. In the process, Al Menhali collapsed and required hospitalization.
Approach & Resolution
Al Menhali and his wife brought a lawsuit against the hotel, the hotel clerk, and the manager. They traveled from their home to the United States for trial in federal court, looking forward to their day in court.
After one day of jury selection, just before opening statements to the jury, the defendants agreed to pay Al Menhali $200,000 to resolve the case.