Salon Charges Men More|for Pedicures, Lawyer Says

UPPER MARLBORO, Md. (CN) - A prominent attorney says a nail salon charged him $2 more for a pedicure just because he's a man. He is suing the salon for $200,000 in Prince George's County Court, claiming his plight "mirrors the case of Rosa Parks."

In his lawsuit, Jimmy Bell describes himself as a "nationally recognized civil rights and entertainment law attorney" who has appeared on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" and other TV programs.

Bell says he and a female companion went to the salon for a manicure and pedicure, but he was charged $2 more for both treatments than his friend. He says his pedicure was even shorter than hers, and "the expertise needed to render the services to Plaintiff and his female friend were also the same."

When Bell asked why he was charged more, "he was told that the pricing was based solely on the fact that he was man," he claims.

Bell was "understandably vexed by this explanation," but "instead of arguing or causing a scene, Mr. Bell paid for the services rendered and sought redress of grievances through legal channels," the complaint states.

He says the nail salon's "discriminatory act" caused him "great shock and emotional distress." He demands $100,000 in compensatory damages and $100,000 in punitive damages, claiming that if "10 of Rich's nail technicians were each to perform 5 manicures and 5 pedicures for male clients daily, Rich's would procure $200 daily and $72,800 annually in additional revenue."

"This case mirrors the case of Rosa Parks in that Ms. Parks paid the same price for unequal treatment because of her race and Mr. Bell received unequal treatment for an unequal price because of his sex," he claims.

According to the lawsuit, Bell filed the first anthrax lawsuit in the United States over the death of a federal postal worker and trained "the entire Police Department for the City of District Heights, Maryland on racial profiling."

He is represented by Edward Malone of Maywood, Ill.

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