Devout Rastafarian sues Georgia police force claiming he was forced to cut dreadlocks he'd been growing for 20 YEARS to as part of terms of work

A former Georgia police officer is suing the department for discrimination alleging he was forced to cut his dreadlocks that he had grown in connection to his religion - despite the CROWN Act being in place.

Milton Myrie, 36, filed a lawsuit for an undisclosed amount of damages on Sunday against the City of South Fulton Police Department claiming they forced him to cut his dreadlocks or he would not be able to become a police officer.

Myrie had moved his family from New York to Georgia in January of 2021 to work for the police department when he claimed he was given the ultimatum. 

When he was moments away from signing his contract and being his police academy training, Myrie said former Deputy Chief Connie Rogers told him he had to cut off his locs in order to work for the department.

Myrie claimed he asks several times to receive a religious accommodation but was told there was none. 

According to the lawsuit, Myrie is a member of the Rastafarian faith and wore a long natural locs hairstyle that symbolized his connection to biblical wisdom and served as his spiritual energy conductors.

'He had grown his locks for 20 years, in accordance with his Rastafarian religion, and on a single day, he was asked to turn his back on everything he believed in,' said the lawsuit.

The lawsuit argued the police department had a sex-based double standard as Myrie witnessed female officers who were allowed to wear their hair in dreadlocks.

In February of 2023, Myrie said he was finally able to speak with someone from human resources and was informed of a religious accommodation. 

After learning his supervisors failed to inform him of this policy, Myrie resigned from the department.

To comply with what he believed was the hairstyle policy, Myrie repeatedly shaved his head so his hair was below two inches which resulted in a chronic skin condition that prevents him from growing his locs back, the lawsuit claimed. 

'He had a deep and personal spiritual connection to his hair locs, and would not have cut them if he knew he could have kept them in accordance with federal law and the City’s CROWN Act,' said the lawsuit.

Prior to Myrie's employment in South Fulton, the city adopted the CROWN Act in November of 2020.

The law makes it illegal for places of employment to discriminate against a person for their hairstyle, including protective and cultural hair textures and hairstyles.

Myrie's lawsuit alleged the police department and the city violated his civil rights for failing to accommodate his religious hairstyle, sex based discrimination and violating the city's CROWN Act.

A spokesperson for the City of South Fulton said to FOX 5: 'Please be assured that we take all allegations seriously and are committed to ensuring a fair and just workplace for all employees.'

'It's essential to note that our city is dedicated to upholding the principles outlined in the CROWN Act, and we are committed to fostering an inclusive and non-discriminatory environment for all employees.'