A federal trial began Monday in Rapid City in a three-year-old lawsuit filed by NDN Collective against Retsel Corporation, former owners of the Grand Gateway Hotel. Jury selection wrapped up in the afternoon, followed by opening statements from both sides.
NDN Collective alleges the hotel discriminated against Native Americans by refusing to rent rooms, citing a Facebook post from the mother of several Retsel board members that declared Native Americans would be banned from the property.
Retsel’s attorneys acknowledged the post was racist but argued it did not reflect or shape hotel policy.
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