The attorney who represented an Oberlin merchant in a successful lawsuit against Oberlin College expects the school to fight a $44 million dollar jury award.
Lee Plakas sued the college on behalf of the Gibson family, which owns Gibson’s Bakery.
Gibson’s argued that Oberlin College defamed the business after a shoplifting incident in 2016 involving a black student. Plakas says Oberlin College refuses to admit its role in implicating Gibson’s as racist.
“The great majority of people that are viewing this case, recognizes that they have been wrong, they are mistaken. And, they have not yet come to the point where they will accept the lessons that the jury tried to teach them.”
Oberlin College did not return a call for comment. The school has maintained that college officials got involved in protests following the incident only to keep the peace and support students.
Attorneys Lee Plakas and Owen Rarric spoke more about the implications of the verdict in this video.
