Black Airbnb guests questioned by police serve notice to sue

Airbnb guest Kells Fyffe-Marshall's account of their police ordeal went viral.

A lawsuit is planned by three black people briefly detained by police in Southern California after a 911 caller wrongly reported the Airbnb guests might be burglars.

Associated Press

May 7, 2018

police called on Black women checking out of airbnb — Airbnb guests were detained by cops because a neighbor thought they were robbers.

By AMANDA LEE MYERS and JANIE HAR, Associated Press
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A lawsuit is planned by three black people briefly detained by police in Southern California after a 911 caller wrongly reported they might be burglars.
The Rialto Police Department said Monday that it has received notice of legal action by the three, who were leaving an Airbnb rental with their luggage when a neighbor called police on April 30.

Police said they were polite during the 22-minute interaction.

But one of the renters, Kells Fyffe-Marshall, wrote on social media that they were “surrounded” by seven police cars and told to put up their hands.

The encounter is the latest example of friction between law enforcement and minorities. Last month, two black men in Philadelphia were arrested after a Starbucks employee called police because they hadn’t bought anything.