
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, July 9, 1993                   TAG: 9307090092
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A-7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Short

DENNY'S HIT BY 50 NEW COMPLAINTS

Lawyers for six black Secret Service agents said Thursday they have filed in federal court more than 50 new allegations of bias against Denny's restaurants in a dozen states, including Virginia.

They said they have used the new complaints to take the first step toward expanding their clients' racial discrimination suit against the restaurant chain into a class action that potentially could involve hundreds of other black people.

"We have been inundated with hundreds of new complaints of discrimination by Denny's," said John P. Relman, speaking for the Washington Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights, which represents the original six plaintiffs.

The black agents, members of the Secret Service's uniformed branch, complained that they never received the meals they ordered at a Denny's in Annapolis, Md., even though all of their white colleagues were served. The agents were in Annapolis to help guard President Clinton.

Coleman Sullivan, vice president for public relations of Flagstar, Denny's parent company, said that since April 1 the restaurant chain has served 99 million meals and received just 17 bias complaints.

"I would say 17 cases out of 99 million doesn't constitute an epidemic in anybody's book," he said, adding that the company does not concede that any of the 17 complaints are valid.

by CNB