Home Depot Accuses Tyrese Gibson of ‘Exaggerated Theatrics,' Deny Actor Was Victim of Racial Discrimination at LA Store
Feb. 2 2024, Published 3:00 a.m. ET
Home Depot slammed Tyrese Gibson as part of the actor’s lawsuit over alleged racial profiling at an LA store.
According to court documents obtained by RadarOnline.com, lawyers for Home Depot accused Tyrese of “exaggerated theatrics” on the date in question.
As RadarOnline.com previously reported, last year, Tyrese filed a $1 million lawsuit over an incident on February 11, 2023, involving a Home Depot cashier.
The Fast & Furious star claimed he was shopping with two of his associates. He said he started to get noticed by fans and it became too much.
Tyrese said he decided to give his associates his credit card to make the purchases while he waited outside. He claimed a cashier told him he could leave while his associates completed the purchase.
The actor said his team members attempted to use the card, but the cashier then refused to let them without Tyrese’s photo ID.
Tyrese became frustrated and walked back into the store to talk to the cashier. He told her he had been in the store 5 minutes earlier. The employee told him she needed an ID for the transaction which led to the actor asking her, “Should I have the CEO of Home Depot call you tomorrow? Because he's my neighbor in Atlanta."
Tyrese demanded $1 million in damages.
A rep for Home Depot said about the lawsuit, “Diversity and respect for all people are core to who we are, and we do not tolerate discrimination in any form. We value Mr. Gibson as a customer, and in the months since this happened, we've reached out to him and his attorneys several times to try to resolve his concerns. We will continue to do so."
In the official response, Home Depot claimed security footage showed Tyrese never spoke to a cashier about his associates using the card before he exited the store.
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The store claimed the real story was Tyrese came to the cashier and dropped off a series of items. The store said Tyrese left the register for over 25 minutes which caused the cashier to have to clear the transaction.
In a newly filed motion, Tyrese accused Home Depot of failing to turn over any requested documents or make its employee witnesses available for depositions. He claimed Home Depot said it would only produce certain information as long as Tyrese agreed to a protective order — which Tyrese said they never mentioned previously, and he doesn’t agree to.
Home Depot fired back at Tyrese’s accusations. Lawyers for the store said they are actively working to provide dates of availability for depositions of the employees involved in the matter.
The store said it needed a protective order before handing over documents to Tyrese.
It argued, “[Tyrese], a celebrity with 19.5 million Instagram followers, has publicly posted information -- such as the video recordings taken on the date of the incident, which were objected to by at least one employee. These postings were then shared and reposted including by media outlets. A protective order will prevent public dissemination of private communications of non-parties that were never intended to be public.”
Home Depot said it expected a lawsuit from Tyrese due to his “statements and exaggerated theatrics on the date of the incident.”
Regarding turning over security footage, Home Depot argued, “CCTV footage is not made available to the public and, due to the camera locations, captures private and sensitive customer information.” Lawyers for the company said it would turn over footage once a protective order was entered.
A judge has yet to rule on the matter.