"I'm thinking about all my other relatives who are here -- how they might feel -- and those who might come in the future and how they would feel," he explained. "Will they still come if they know that in America they get their headcover snatched away from them?"

Herb Bernsen, director of St. Louis County Justice Services, said his staff was notified of the incident Friday and was researching the matter, so he could not offer comment on it specifically.

But, he said, as a matter of policy, no one is allowed to wear head gear of any kind for security reasons.

“We certainly respect religious practices and at the same time we need to balance that with security needs regardless of religion,” Bernsen said.

Bernsen said he’s open to discussion about “any modification in our practice that would make sense, on how to deal with such cases in the future.”

Adan enlisted the help of the St. Louis Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, a Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization, to draw attention to the matter.

“It’s equivalent to a lady having her clothes removed in public,” said Executive Director Faizan Syed. “It was a deep violation.”