Brown, 30, filed a suit alleging that he was "paraded" through the department store's flagship Herald Square location after being falsely accused of using a fake credit card to buy a $1,300 watch for his mother.
KENDALL RODRIGUEZ FOR NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Rob Brown is settling his racial discrimination lawsuit against Macy's and the city, according to court papers.
“Treme” actor Rob Brown is settling his explosive “shop-and-frisk” racial profiling lawsuits against Macy’s and the city, new court papers show.
“The court has been informed that the parties have reached a settlement in principle,” Manhattan Federal Judge Lorna Schofield wrote Thursday with regard to Brown’s twin actions against the department store and the city.
Brown, 30, whose breakout performance was in the 2000 movie “Finding Forrester,” claimed he was handcuffed, “paraded” through the Macy’s flagship Herald Square store and detained on June 8, 2013 after being accused of using a fake credit card to buy his mother a $1,300 watch.
The HBO series star slapped Macy’s and the city with false imprisonment, negligent training and civil rights allegations, seeking unspecified money damages and a court order forcing Macy’s and the NYPD to stop the alleged practice of targeting minorities who shop at high-end stores.
A spokeswoman for Macy’s said, “The lawsuits by various plaintiffs who alleged racial profiling by Macy’s have been settled in principle. We are making no further comment.
“Our company strictly prohibits discrimination of any kind and has zero tolerance for racial profiling.”
A lawyer for the city said, “A settlement has been reached in principle, but the details are still being finalized.”
AMANDA HALL/GETTY IMAGES/ROBERT HARDING WORL
A spokeswoman for Macy's said in a statement that, "Our company strictly prohibits discrimination of any kind and has zero tolerance for racial profiling."
Brown’s lawyer, Douglas Wigdor, confirmed the news but declined to comment on the terms of the settlement.
Wigdor represents other people who have brought or threatened to bring lawsuits over similar Macy’s incidents.
Those cases, including that of Maria Paez, have also been settled in principle.
Paez said she was with her 12-year-old son last September trying on clothes and putting items she wanted to buy into a Macy’s bag to take to the checkout counter when she was stopped and tossed into the in-store jail.
Schofield says Brown can refile the lawsuits within 60 days if the settlement falls apart.
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