ELYRIA, Ohio — A jury has awarded $11 million to a father and son who claimed Ohio's Oberlin College and an administrator hurt their business and libeled them during a dispute that triggered protests and allegations of racism following a shoplifting incident.
The Elyria Chronicle-Telegram reports a Lorain County jury Friday awarded David Gibson $5.8 million, son Allyn Gibson $3 million and Gibson's Bakery $2.2 million. An attorney said the Gibsons just wanted "the truth to come out."
Attorneys for the college and a spokesman declined comment Friday.
The protests occurred after Allyson Gibson, who is white, confronted a black student who'd shoplifted a bottle of wine in November 2016. Two other black students joined in and assaulted Gibson.
The students pleaded guilty to misdemeanors and read statements in court saying Gibson's actions weren't racially motivated.
The bakery filed the lawsuit in 2017 accusing the college and a top dean of slandering Gibson's as a "racist establishment" and taking steps to destroy the family's livelihood.
Oberlin College issued the following statement to WKYC shortly after the lawsuit was filed a few years ago:
"Oberlin College and Dr. Raimondo deny and reject all claims asserted in the lawsuit filed by Gibson Bros., Inc. in the Lorain County Court of Common Pleas. The allegations are untrue and we will vigorously defend against them.
The College values its long relationship with the town of Oberlin and its businesses, including Gibson's Bakery. We are saddened that the Gibson family has chosen to pursue litigation. As this is now a legal matter, the College will suspend, effective immediately, its business relationships with Gibson's Bakery until such time as a mutually productive relationship may be re-established. We will have no further public comment on this matter."