Couple attacked, called slurs trying to use coupon for oil change, TX suit says
A couple from Texas is suing after they say they were attacked and called racial slurs while trying to use a coupon for an oil change.
The lawsuit filed out of Harris County lists Midas and Groupon among the defendants.
McClatchy News reached out to Midas and Groupon on April 15 for comment but did not immediately hear back.
On May 1, 2023, Dymond Canada and Donae Douglas went to a Midas in Houston to get an oil change for their vehicle, according to a lawsuit filed April 11.
The couple had a voucher from Groupon that they say they planned to use as payment. However, an employee refused them service, the lawsuit said.
“He immediately started laughing, and that’s when the ‘broke’ comments came,” Canada told KTRK in September 2023.
The employee began using discriminatory language toward the Black, same-sex couple, saying Midas didn’t “serve people like you,” according to the civil complaint.
As the couple was leaving, the employee became hostile and yelled “racial, misogynistic and homophobic slurs” at the women, the complaint said. He then kicked their vehicle and threatened them, the lawsuit said.
The employee blocked their vehicle from leaving, then assaulted both of the women, according to the lawsuit.
“Every time he pushed her, he said, ‘You want to be a man? Fight me like a man,’” Canada told KTRK.
After the incident, the women went to their home and were arrested by Houston police, the lawsuit said.
The employee reported to police that the women physically attacked him, according to the complaint.
The employee said the women attacked him with a stiletto shoe, according to KTRK. But the women said that was not true and they “never laid a hand on him.”
The case was reported on by media outlets and the women “were publicly branded as violent criminals,” the lawsuit said. They ultimately moved out of Houston for fear of their safety.
A grand jury later declined to pursue charges and the case was dismissed, according to the complaint.
The women said they suffered long-lasting physical and emotional harm, the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit is asking for an undetermined amount in damages.
