Jury awards $11 million in lawsuit over Ohio college dispute

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. Two other black students joined in and assaulted Gibson.

The students pleaded guilty to misdemeanours and read statements in court saying Gibson’s actions weren’t racially motivated.

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Information from: The Chronicle-Telegram, http://www.chronicletelegram.com