Garrett v. Tandy Corporation
United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
295 F.3d 94 (2002)

- Written by Sean Carroll, JD
Facts
John Garrett (plaintiff), a Black man, was shopping in a Radio Shack (defendant). Three white Radio Shack employees closely monitored Garrett’s activity in the store, with at least one of them being near Garrett the entire time he was in the store. Garrett bought a book, a telephone, and batteries and left the store. After Garrett left, the store manager, Steven Richard, noticed that a laptop was missing. Richard called the police and accused Garrett of stealing it. The police searched Garrett’s home and car but did not find the laptop. Richard did not accuse the other shoppers in the store around that time, all of whom were White. Garrett had issues with some of the things he bought but asserted that he did not seek to contact Radio Shack about the issues due to fear that the store would again accuse him of theft. Garrett sued Radio Shack for discrimination under 42 U.S.C. § 1981. Specifically, Garrett alleged that Radio Shack’s discrimination interfered with his contractual rights, including his right to enforce or modify the contract by returning the goods he purchased. The district court granted Radio Shack’s motion to dismiss. Garrett appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Selya, J.)
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