Family of Teen Arrested for Homemade Clock Seeks $15M

The family of a teen who was arrested after Irving, Texas, school officials say they mistook his homemade invention for a fake bomb says they'll sue the city and school district if they don't meet their demands that include $15 million in total compensation.

Ahmed Mohamed, 14, was handcuffed and also suspended from his suburban Dallas high school in September because of his teacher's concerns.

An outpouring of support from across the country led to Ahmed's being invited to the White House by President Obama himself. Also, Twitter offered him an internship, Mark Zuckerberg invited him to Facebook and even Google asked him to attend its science fair.

In addition to apologies, lawyers for Ahmed's family say they are asking for $10 million from the city of Irving and $5 million from the Irving Independent School District as compensation for the "damages Ahmed suffered at the hands" of the city, school district and their employees.

"If you fail to comply with the above demands within sixty days from the date of this letter, you should expect that we will file a civil action addressing the causes of action and events described in this letter," the family says in letters of demand sent Monday to the city and school district.

"As indicated, our hope is that before litigation there will be some discussion between us regarding the possibility of settling before filing suit. I look forward to hearing from you."

They say the teenager's reputation has been "permanently scarred."

"There is no other way to put it: Ahmed's reputation in the global community is permanently scarred. One also would anticipate that Ahmed, quite reasonably, will have a lifelong fear of the law enforcement and educational establishments that have let him down so terribly," the letters state.

The letters allege that school officials "intentionally harassed and singled out Ahmed for undue punishment based on his race, national origin, and religion." It also alleges that Ahmed "suffered severe psychological trauma during his involuntarily separation from his grandmother and extended family. This trauma has since been amplified due to the global media attention this incident has gathered."

The family withdrew Mohamed from MacArthur High School in Irving, Texas, despite an invitation from the school to return when he finished serving a suspension.

Citing personal security concerns, Ahmed and his family are living in Doha, Qatar, where he recently accepted a scholarship to the Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development. But they hope to return to Texas when they feel safe again, according to the letters.

School district officials told ABC News' "Good Morning America" overnight they have received the letter from Mohamed's lawyer and are reviewing it.

The city of Irving says it has "received a demand letter from attorneys representing Ahmed Mohamed. At this time, we are reviewing it and have nothing further to add."