Prosecutor declines to charge Sikh due to religious significance of mandated article of faith Washington D.C. – April 22, 2008: This past week, the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF) learned that criminal charges were dropped against a Sikh American truck driver who was arrested for wearing his kirpan (a religious article of faith) in California. Last December, Mr. Sahadur Singh, a Utah resident, was driving in Kern County, California when a police officer stopped him for a normal traffic violation. The police officer spotted the kirpan underneath Mr. Singh’s clothing and immediately arrested him for violating the State’s concealed weapon law and for resisting arrest. On his way to the police station, Kern County police officers reportedly screamed at Mr. Singh asking him, “Are you a Terrorist?”, “When was the last time you went over there, Taliban?” and “Did you ever send money to the Taliban?” On the request of Mr. Singh, SALDEF intervened and wrote a letter to the prosecutor in the case and sent the prosecutor information detailing the religious significance of the kirpan along with a list of case law documenting the dismissal of similar charges against other Sikhs across the country. SALDEF is currently assisting Mr. Singh obtain his kirpan from the local authorities. SALDEF is also working with local Kern County officials in regards to the alleged racist comments made by the Kern County police officers after the incident took place. Over the past 12 years, SALDEF has received and resolved nearly 30 cases involving Sikhs who faced criminal charges for wearing their kirpans. SALDEF thanks the Kern County Prosecutor’s office for being receptive and learning about the significance of the Sikh kirpan and deciding not to prosecute this case.
