City of LA fines Smart & Final $10,000 over alleged discrimination

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- The city of Los Angeles on Monday fined grocery chain Smart & Final and its security vendor following a discrimination claim made by a Black shopper.

During a news conference at City Hall, Councilman Hugo Soto-Martinez, who chairs the civil rights committee, said Smart & Final faces a $10,000 penalty and Non-Stop Security Services received a $5,000 fine. This is the first enforcement of this kind made by the Civil Rights Department.

On Sept. 22, 2022, Corey Brown, a Black man, entered a Smart & Final store near Ninth and Figueroa streets in downtown L.A. Brown said he was told by security he couldn't enter unless he left his backpack at the front.

Brown chose to go home and drop off his backpack because he was carrying personal items. When he returned to the Smart & Final, he said he saw other customers of different races shopping with their backpacks.

Brown decided to contact the L.A. Civil Rights Department and was assigned an investigator.

"I worked with this investigator over the last year, and if it weren't for his help Smart & Final would continue to evade responsibility," Brown said at the news conference.

The investigation included interviews and it determined that a "bag policy" at this Smart & Final location was "discriminatorily enforced based on customers' appearances."

The security service has decided to settle, which involves a reduced fine and promise to train their security guards to prevent similar incidents in the future.

The city said given there's a "bag policy" at that specific store location, Brown should have been treated equally.

Smart & Final issued a statement that said:

"We have only just received information from the City regarding these claims, which involve a former third-party security guard and not one of our employees. We take these allegations very seriously and are actively investigating the matter. Discrimination goes against our core values and has no place in our stores."

Residents who encounter civil rights violations in the private sector of commerce, education, employment and housing, are encouraged to report to incidents to LA Civil Rights by calling 213-978-1845 or filing a complaint at LACivilRightsClaim.com, Kim Kasreliovich, assistant general manager of the Civil Rights Enforcement Unit said.

City News Service contributed to this report.