Oberlin College and Conservatory says that it has begun the payment of more than $36 million to the owners of a local bakery who claimed they were falsely accused of racism after three Black students were arrested in November 2016.
The Thursday announcement comes just days after the Ohio Supreme Court declined to hear Oberlin's appeal of a lower-court ruling.
"We are disappointed by the Court's decision. However, this does not diminish our respect for the law and the integrity of our legal system," the college said in a statement.
In this Nov. 22, 2017 file photo, pedestrians pass the storefront of Gibson's Bakery in Oberlin, Ohio. (Dake Kang/)
The case stems from an incident in November 2016, when Allyn Gibson, the son of Gibson's Bakery co-owner David Gibson, tackled a student he suspected of having stolen two bottles of wine from the store. Two female students tried to intervene, and all three were later arrested.
In 2017, the family-owned bakery filed a lawsuit suit against the college for siding with the three students.
The students said that they had been racially profiled and that their only crime was trying to buy alcohol with fake identification. The bakery employee said that he was attacked by the students after he caught them trying to shoplift.
This March 5, 2013 file photo shows a student riding a bicycle on the campus of Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio. (Tony Dejak/)
The confrontation led to a series of protests where hundreds of Oberlin students, as well as some professors and deans, stood outside the bakery handing out flyers stating that the bakery "is a RACIST establishment with a LONG ACCOUNT of RACIAL PROFILING and DISCRIMINATION," according to a defamation lawsuit filed by its owners.
"Today we urge you to shop elsewhere in light of a particularly heinous event involving the owners of this establishment and local law enforcement," the flyers read.
Earlier this year, a three-judge panel agreed that Oberlin, a private liberal arts college and conservatory of music in northeast Ohio, was liable for libel, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and intentional interference with a business relationship.
On Thursday, Oberlin's Board of Trustees announced its decision not to pursue the matter further.
"This matter has been painful for everyone. We hope that the end of the litigation will begin the healing of our entire community," the college said in a statement.
"We value our relationship with the City of Oberlin, and we look forward to continuing our support of and partnership with local businesses as we work together to help our city thrive," the board added.
With News Wire Services