On June 17, 39-year-old Edward C. Craig II, a Muslim inmate in the Pinellas County Jail system filed a “pro se” lawsuit against a detention deputy of the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office.
His complaint cites violations of his first and eighth amendment rights which grant him religious freedom and protection from cruel and unusual punishment.
According to Craig’s legal complaint, on April 16 he was denied proper meal service during the Muslim “Ramadan” religious period, which requires fasting, prayer, reflection, and community.
Craig alleges that between 3:25 and 3:40 a.m., a Deputy “Stanfield” was unmoved by his complaint that the bread portion of his meal was too small. Instead, Craig claims Stanfield said, “And what do you want me to do about it?”
After Craig requested that Stanfield call a sergeant or the kitchen, Stanfield replied, “I don’t give a f—k.” After Craig asked again for assistance, Stanfield allegedly said, “Go have a seat and eat the s—t.”
Apparently irritated after Craig requested meal assistance for a fourth time, Stanfield allegedly dug his nails into Craig’s arm and improperly handcuffed him, which led to Craig complaining that he could not feel his fingers and saying, “You are hurting me.”
Eventually, Stanfield said to Craig, “Do you want me to f—–g slam you – would you like that – now, be still.”
Craig also claims he was mistreated while being escorted to a cell. Stanfield allegedly pushed him and required him to open the cell door despite the facts his hands were cuffed.
An officer referred to as “Corporal Caminero” allegedly interviewed Craig after the incident and agreed that Stanfield should have provided meal assistance, considering the amount of bread was not compliant with Ramadan religious requirements.
Craig alleges that Caminero tried, but failed to make sure the bread portion of his meal was correct. Caminero also required Craig and Stanfield to express apologies to one another for their wrongdoings.
During his medical visit three days after the incident, Craig was given 200 milligrams of Tylenol for “pain” and “nerve inflammation” in his fingers, and allegedly showed the medical staff where Stanfield dug into Craig’s arms with his nails.
In seeking $10,000 for injuries and $300,000 for constitutional rights violations, he claims “disfigurement” of his right arm although it was not described in the suit.
According to Beckett Law, which legally represents “Religious Liberty for All,” a 2012 U.S. government lawsuit was won in 2016 against the Florida Department of Corrections for not providing kosher meals in prison for Jewish inmates.
Shortly after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit heralded that decision, it was declared in the courts that Muslims must also be given proper religious diets. Beckett Law indicates online that 35 states in the U.S. provided proper religious diets in their prison systems at the time Florida Department of Corrections was sued.
A habitual offender, Craig was arrested and charged on April 4 for felony petit theft, loitering or prowling, and obstruction by resisting an officer without violence. Serving a series of prison terms from 2009 to 2015,
Craig was previously found guilty in Hillsborough County for grand theft, and in Pinellas County for trafficking in stolen property, committing a robbery or “sudden snatching” with no weapon, manufacturing, delivering, and selling cocaine, and failing to appear in court after posting bail. In his latest escapade with the law, Craig was documented as a homeless person.
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