2 American women who were detained after speaking Spanish in Montana file suit

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“This changed our lives, I believe, forever,” one of the women said. She has also said the incident made her young daughter afraid to speak Spanish.

By Daniella Silva Feb. 14, 2019, 3:26 PM CST

The American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit on Thursday against the U.S. Customs and Border Protection on behalf of two American women who were detained after speaking Spanish at a convenience store in Montana.

Ana Suda and Martha “Mimi” Hernandez, who were both born in the United States, have said they were detained by a Border Patrol agent after he heard them chatting in Spanish while buying groceries at a store in Havre, Montana, in May. Their exchange with him was captured by the women on video.

The agent, Paul O’Neal, “singled out, detained, and interrogated” the women “because he heard them speaking Spanish,” the lawsuit claims.

He “offered no other justification for their detention, and there was no reason to believe that either Ms. Suda or Ms. Hernandez had violated any law,” the suit says.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/2-american-women-detained-after-speaking-spanish-montana-file-suit-n971716