Charges dropped against pro-Palestinian protester arrested under mask ban for wearing a kaffiyeh

Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Prosecutors have dropped charges against a pro-Palestinian protester arrested under a local face mask ban for wearing a kaffiyeh. Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly’s office says charges against Xavier Roa were dismissed in court Friday. Prosecutors say they determined the allegations could not be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Roa’s lawyer called it a “big victory” for civil liberties. Roa was arrested as he led others in protest chants outside an orthodox synagogue in September. County lawmakers approved the local measure to prevent people from using masks to obscure their identities in public unless they had health or religious reasons.