ACLU-DE, other advocates call out University of Delaware response to violent student arrest

The Delaware Department of Justice announced last week that Mohammed Sanogo’s charges would be dropped after his violent arrest on the University of Delaware campus June 15. The move brought university statements and newly released footage of that night.

Now, advocates are saying it wasn’t enough.

ACLU-Delaware, the Philadelphia chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations and Christina school board members banded together to call the university’s response “misleading” and “a missed opportunity for transparency and further accountability,” in a press release Tuesday.

“We call on UD Police to agree to a process of true accountability and communication with interested parties, including the Christina School District who has underlined they are seriously disturbed by the way their graduate was treated on the night of his graduation,” said Timothy Welbeck, civil rights attorney for CAIR-Philadelphia, in a statement.

“It is crucial that the UD Police learn from their mistakes. This requires acknowledging harm done to an upstanding student such as Mohammed.”

The groups thanked the Delaware attorney general’s decision to dismiss charges — but assert “written statement and edited videos” ultimately mislead the public. Particularly, they note, it “misconstrues the Sanogo family’s stance regarding any admission of responsibility.”

As previously reported, the state dropped charges after examining body camera and surveillance footage, talking to UD police and having Sanogo attend a "Department of Justice-sanctioned" course. A letter submitted to the clerk of court read that "the State is satisfied that Mr. Sanogo now understands how his actions that evening contributed to a dangerous situation."

The state also said the decision was "based on Mr. Sanogo's acceptance of responsibility, combined with the desire to avoid any criminal record."

ACLU-DE echoed a concern for the bigger picture.

“We need to take this incident very seriously,” said Shannon Griffin, senior policy adviser.

“It is our responsibility to challenge the over-criminalization of learning environments that only works to fuel the school-to-prison pipeline and call out these blatant instances of implicit bias that disproportionately impact Black and brown students causing them to experience harsher discipline than their white counterparts.”

What was the University of Delaware's response?

UD has denied claims that the incident was an instance of racial or religious discrimination, saying it "rejects any and all allegations that the UD Police Department officers acted with racial or religious bias."

On July 27, over 40 days after the arrest, UD released both police body camera footage and surveillance footage from a nearby building. Naveed Baqir, a Christina School District board member who’s been vocal since last month’s arrest, said it left viewers with more questions than answers.

"The edited video shows dishonesty of UD to piece together an unrelated party's reckless actions as a reason behind the decision to arrest Mohammad,” Baqir said, stressing one vehicle speeding out of frame was neither Sanogo nor his car.

UD's initial statement from June 21 and the arrest warrant obtained by Delaware Online/The News Journal didn't clarify that Sanogo was not operating the vehicle in which passengers were hanging out of windows.

UD has stood by its officers' actions.

"The University has stated and continues to maintain that UD police officers acted appropriately in addressing behavior that posed a risk to public safety," a statement under the video reads. "The University will continue its review of this situation to look for learning opportunities."

How will the school district move forward?

Baqir has said that he's ready to set more motions limiting the school district's ties to UD. The next board meeting is set for Aug. 8.

After Christina schools moved to take graduations off campus at July's board meeting, the university released a statement, pledging to “continue to work together to create a stronger partnership, invite frequent communication, nurture community-building and help advance cultural understanding."

More: What University of Delaware police body cam footage shows us about Newark HS grad's arrest

"Our intention is to continue productive dialogue with the Christina School District, along with other valued community partners, as we work together toward building a stronger relationship,” a university spokesperson told Delaware Online/The News Journal after Sanogo's charges had been dropped.

Despite wanting to continue its positive relations with the district, UD has so far stood behind its handling of the arrest.

"We will keep adding the sanctions until there is a positive response and an acknowledgment that they have done something egregious," Baqir said last month, a message that could potentially carry into the school district's next board gathering.

Kelly Powers covers race, culture and equity for the USA TODAY Network's Northeast Region and Delaware Online, with a focus on education. Contact her at kepowers@gannett.com or (231) 622-2191, and follow her on Twitter @kpowers01.

Contact Konner Metz at kmetz@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter @konner_metz.

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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: ACLU, advocates call out UD's response to violent arrest of HS student