The New York Police Department reinstated a Muslim officer, who was suspended without pay for refusing to shave his beard, The Daily Mail reports.
Officer Masood Syed was reinstated after he was escorted out of police headquarters last month for not shaving his beard which he said he grew for religious reasons.
After a little more than a week when a judge said the NYPD had to reinstate the officer’s pay and benefits, Syed was allowed back on the force and permitted to keep his one-inch beard, according to NBC News.
Syed, who said he has maintained about half-to-one-inch (13 to 25 mm) beard for most of his 10-year career, sued the department, saying its no-beard policy is unconstitutional.
‘I am very relieved,’ Syed said following the hearing, as he celebrated his 32nd birthday with a half dozen fellow officers supporting him in the Manhattan court.
{Matzav.com}
