Murrell V. Ocean Mecca Motel Case Study

Murrel v. Ocean Mecca Motel, Inc., 262 F.3d 253 (2001)

Joshua Richard Yascavage 4059778

HOSP302

American Military University

In the following case, we will look, at racial, discrimination, when it comes to hotel guests. In Murrell v. Ocean Mecca Motel Inc., we see this when a motel evicted an interracial party under false pretenses. 42 U.S.C.S. § 1981 makes it illegal to discriminating based of race in making or enforcing private contracts. Under the McDonnel Douglas proof scheme the burden of proof of discrimination will be solely on the plaintiff, requiring them to prove that the defendant has unlawfully discriminated against them, by showing that they are a member of a protected class, entered into or had a contract,

Ocean Mecca Motel Inc. started in the District Court of the District of Maryland where the courts granted summary judgment to the defendant. Summary judgment is defined by the legal-dictionary as; a procedural device used during civil litigation to promptly and expeditiously dispose of a case without a trial. It is used when there is no dispute as to the material facts of the case and a party is entitled to judgment as a Matter of Law. (Summary judgment) The plaintiffs appealed this decision and took it to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, with the facts of the case showing that violation of 42 U.S.C.S. § 1981

Ocean Mecca Motel, Inc. 2001) Since the plaintiffs established a prima facie case, the defendants were required to show a lawful reason for eviction. The motels claim that the plaintiffs were evicted due to their party size, was shown to be false and was based on racial reasoning. Even though a racial group had not problems getting a room could be due to the motel not wanting to have multiple issues of discrimination so close to each other specifically since they were just accused of discrimination. (Murrel v. Ocean Mecca Motel, Inc.