Jury orders Seminole Tribe to pay $2M

JUNE 8, 2001

A jury in Florida has awarded a boxer and three of his friends a nearly $2 million judgment because a business owned by the Seminole Tribe violated their civil rights.

Three African-Americans and one Asian man were required to put up a cash deposit or use a credit card before ordering food at a hotel owned by the tribe. They were awarded $1.5 million in punitive damages and $400,000 in compensatory damages from the tribe's economic development corporation.

The group plans to have the corporation pay their legal fees, which means the total price tag to the tribe would top $2 million.

The tribe is planning an appeal. The hotel, in Tampa, is now closed.

Get the Story:
Boxer, 3 friends win jury award in civil-rights suit against tribe (The Orlando Sentinel 6/8)

Relevant Links:
Seminole Tribe - http://www.seminoletribe.com