Joe Barry Carroll loses his racial discrimination lawsuit against a restaurant – NBA News
Joe Barry Carroll, the former NBA player was left disappointed when a five year old incident, in which he claimed racial abuse, finally received its verdict on Friday.
The federal jury that included nine white and three black members, evenly divided over gender, gave their judgment on Tavern at Phipps versus Joe Barry Carroll and Joseph Shaw’s case and it was one, Joe Barry wasn’t hoping for.
In a verdict that took jury just 15 minutes to decide after hearing all witnesses and attorneys of both sides, Tavern at Phipps was not found infringing the civil rights of Shaw and Carroll by asking them to relinquish their seats
for two white women.
Carroll, who had claimed for $3 million in damages was not happy with the decision and said that “he had to go through the process” and, “Their behaviour was outrageous.”
It all started back in August 2006, when former National Basketball Association All-Star Carroll and Shaw, who is an attorney, went to Tavern at Phipps and ordered some drinks and appetizers. When the two were having their drinks
they became subject to club’s unwritten policy according to which, if men would give up their seats for women, they’ll be offered free round of drinks.
However, when asked, Carroll and Shaw refused to give their seats to the ladies. The club’s management offered them tables in exchange for their seats, but they didn’t agree to it as well. Consequently the Tavern’s operating partner,
Heather Dennis called an off duty Atlanta police man, who helped the club’s management in escorting Carroll and Shaw out.
This did not go down well with Carroll and Shaw and the duo filed a law suit against the club in which they claimed that Tavern at Phipps violated their civil rights. According to Shaw and Carroll, the club management ejected them
because they were black and therefore breached the public accommodation law.
Carroll and Shaw accused that the bar uses this policy to keep the black customers away so its terrace can remain filled with white majority. However, in his defence CEO of the Tavern Corp., Greg Greenbaum denied such acquisitions
and said that the relinquish seat policy was formed to facilitate female clients, who attract more customers and keep the rates of their club’s tickets high.
He also told that this policy was formed by a black manager, who saw the potential in the female customers. Against these claims, Carroll and Shaw’s attorney Jeffrey Bramlett said, “Southern hospitality did not apply equally to
blacks and whites. The signal from the top was ‘I want a predominantly white place, it's a good business model and it's making me lots of money.’”
However Ernest Green, who was the legal representative for the tavern, responded with an argument that it was Carroll and Shaw, who inserted racism in their policy, which he said, had been practiced in all restaurants consistently
that are operational for two decades now.
Green said, “This incident didn't happen because they were black. This incident happened because Mr. Carroll and Mr. Shaw wanted to be treated better than anyone else."
In the ensuing proceedings, Carroll and Shaw failed to prove their racial discrimination point and the decision went in Tavern at Phipps favour.
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