Excerpt:
A Henry County state judge has reversed his own decision and will allow a Muslim man to wear his head covering into the courtroom.
"The Court finds through its own research that there is a basis in the Quran for both men and women to cover their heads as a religious observance," Judge James T. Chafin wrote in an order obtained by the AJC. "Accordingly, the Court will permit the defendant to wear his hat in the courtroom as a valid religious observance."
Chafin had blocked Troy "Tariq" Montgomery, of DeKalb County, from entering the courtroom three separate times to defend a speeding charge, attorney Mawuli Mel Davis told the AJC. Montgomery, 46, wears a kufi, a tight-fitting cap, as a symbol of humility at all times, Davis said.