--- description: A Muslim officer at the NYPD has filed a class action suit alleging that the department's no-beard rule infringes on his religious freedom title: NYPD Sued by Muslim Officer Over No-Beard Policy image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt33a0704152ba02a2/69889918ab6d770e736aa2fe/masood-syed-nypd-beard-lawsuit.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Muslim NYPD Officer Sues Over Department's No-Beard Rule  by [Justin Worland](/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Senior Correspondent Jun 23, 2016 11:36 AM CUT  New York Police Department officer Masood Syed, center, leaves Manhattan Federal Court on June 22, 2016\. Sayed, a Sunni Muslim, filed a lawsuit against the city for suspending him from the force over the length of his beard. New York Police Department officer Masood Syed, center, leaves Manhattan Federal Court on June 22, 2016\. Sayed, a Sunni Muslim, filed a lawsuit against the city for suspending him from the force over the length of his beard.Jefferson Siegel—NY Daily News/Getty Images  by [Justin Worland](/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Senior Correspondent Jun 23, 2016 11:36 AM CUT A Muslim officer at the New York Police Department has filed a class action suit against his employer alleging that the department’s no-beard rule infringes on his religious freedom, according to [local](http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/muslim-nypd-officer-suspended-refusing-shave-beard-article-1.2683755 "undefined") [reports](http://www.cbsnews.com/news/judge-to-nypd-pay-muslim-officer-who-sued-over-beard-length/ "undefined"). Masood Syed, 32, was suspended Tuesday for refusing to shave his beard and filed suit the following day in the Federal District Court in Manhattan, according to a New York _Times_ [report](http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/23/nyregion/muslim-officer-sues-new-york-police-dept-over-no-beard-policy.html?%5Fr=1 "undefined"). The judge told the NYPD to continue paying Syed until a ruling in July. **Read More**: [The Surprising—and Welcome—Social Advance Embedded in the Orlando Attacks](http://time.com/4369974/orlando-shooting-gay-rights/ "undefined") The NYPD said that the rule was designed with officer safety in mind. Beards prevent easy use of gas masks, according to the department. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4379543/nypd-muslim-beard/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4379543/nypd-muslim-beard/"},"headline":"Muslim NYPD Officer Sues Over Department's No-Beard Rule","datePublished":"2016-06-23T11:36:18.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T22:48:01.675Z","description":"The NYPD said that the rule was designed with officer safety in mind","url":"https://time.com/4379543/nypd-muslim-beard/","keywords":["New York","Religion"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt33a0704152ba02a2/69889918ab6d770e736aa2fe/masood-syed-nypd-beard-lawsuit.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Justin Worland","jobTitle":"Senior Correspondent","url":"https://time.com/author/justin-worland/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt33a0704152ba02a2/69889918ab6d770e736aa2fe/masood-syed-nypd-beard-lawsuit.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Sunni Officer","caption":"New York Police Department officer Masood Syed, center, leaves Manhattan Federal Court on June 22, 2016. Sayed, a Sunni Muslim, filed a lawsuit against the city for suspending him from the force over the length of his beard.","creditText":"Jefferson Siegel—NY Daily News/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4379543/nypd-muslim-beard/","name":"Muslim NYPD Officer Sues Over Department's No-Beard Rule"}}]}] ```