Jury Awards $103,000 to Black Refused Service at South Carolina Restaurant
AIKEN, S.C. — A jury Friday told a restaurant owner to pay $103,000 to a man who was turned away because he is black, but said five others should get nothing because they knew the trip was being used to test the restaurant, a lawyer said.
Charles White Jr., 26, and five other leaders with the National Assn. for the Advancement of Colored People each sought $200,000 in damages for being turned away by the Buffalo Room restaurant on Sept. 5, 1989.
The jury ruled that only White was entitled to damages, because, defense attorney Richard Breibart said, White was the only one who did not know in advance that the trip was being used to test the restaurant’s admission policy. Attorney John R. Harper said he would appeal on behalf of the five plaintiffs who weren’t awarded damages.
Breibart said he would appeal the award to White on behalf of his client, Buffalo Room owner Bruce Salter, 78.
The Buffalo Room was closed after the state revoked its liquor license for refusing to serve blacks.
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