Gibson’s Bakery awarded more than $11 million in years-long legal battle with Oberlin College

ELYRIA, Ohio -- Gibson’s Bakery won more than $11 million from Oberlin College Friday in a lawsuit stemming from protests outside the College Street business in November 2016.

The bakery sued the liberal arts college and Vice President and Dean of Students Meredith Raimondo after a robbery at the bakery.

Three black Oberlin students were arrested after one tried to use a fake ID and shoplifted from Gibson’s in 2016, according to the Chronicle-Telegram, which extensively covered the case. Allyn Gibson, the white son of the bakery’s owner, followed the students out of the store and got into a physical altercation with them.

After the students were arrested, student protests erupted, claiming that the robbery charge and physical conflict were racially motivated. Protestors urged patrons to shop elsewhere.

The protests became so large that Oberlin’s police chief testified that he was considering pulling in the county’s riot team, according to the Chronicle-Telegram. The divide was covered by national media outlets, including the Associated Press and CBS.

The students pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor in August 2017, reading statements into the record that Gibson was within his rights to detain the robber and that the conflict was not racially motivated.

Oberlin had stopped ordering from the bakery after the 2016 protests, but resumed business with Gibson’s in January 2017, according to the Chronicle-Telegram. When Gibson’s filed the lawsuit in November 2017, Oberlin quit doing business with them again.

The lawsuit claimed that Raimondo handed out flyers calling Gibson’s racist and spoke into a bullhorn at the protests. The suit also said other professors participated.

A member of the Gibson’s Bakery legal team said the jury found:

• Oberlin College and Raimondo liable for defamation
• Oberlin College liable for infliction of intentional emotional distress
• Raimondo liable for intentional interference of business relationships

Oberlin spokesman Scott Wargo wrote in an email that the college has no comment on the verdict.

Lead attorney for Gibson’s Bakery, Lee Plakas, said in a phone interview that the case was a “David vs. Goliath” situation and is, to his knowledge, one of the longest-running civil trials in Lorain County history.

It was hard to find jurors who hadn’t read about or formed opinions on the case after it was covered heavily by the media, he said. There were also about 15 attorneys who participated in the trial on both sides.

CALIFORNIA TO TAX THE UNINSURED TO PAY FOR FREE HEALTHCARE FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS
by Kevin Ryan

California is set to become the first state in the country to give full health benefits to illegal immigrants. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) and Democrats in the state legislature reached a deal to make illegal immigrants under the age of 26 eligible for the state’s Medicaid program, known as Medi-Cal. Medi-Cal provides free or low cost healthcare to lower income Californians.

State officials have estimated the benefits would be available to about 90,000 illegal immigrants at a cost of $98 million in the first year alone.

To pay for this, the state is reimposing the individual mandate penalty on state residents who don’t have health insurance. The individual mandate had been a part of Obamacare before Republicans eliminated it as part of the 2017 overhaul to the federal tax code. The penalty would be $695 per person per year, or 2.5% of annual income, whichever is greater. The Newsom administration estimates a state individual mandate would raise nearly $320 million next year from uninsured people.

The money would also be used to provide insurance subsidies to individuals and families making up to six times the poverty level — a higher level than in any other state.

The deal is part of a broader $213 billion California state budget. It would take effect in January 2020.