Family says son in wheelchair kicked out of Cumberland Mall

Family claims Cumberland Mall staff kicked them out because son was in wheelchair

Demond Crump Sr. and his son, Demond Jr., were at the mall in Cobb County, Georgia to promote their family business after winning a Morehouse College business pitch contest. While the family was setting up, a mall employee told Crump Sr. that his son, who has cerebral palsy, needed to leave. The mall apologized for its poor communication, and invited the Crump family back.

COBB COUNTY, Ga. - A family said they believe they were discriminated against at the Cumberland Mall because their son was in a wheelchair.

Asked to leave Cumberland Mall

What they're saying:

Demond Crump Sr. said his business, Reign Premium Sanitary Napkins, won a Morehouse College business pitch contest and got the opportunity to sell their products at Cumberland Mall during the busy All-Star Game weekend. They were setting up their booth when they said one of the mall managers told them their son couldn’t be there.

"We were being told that our son couldn’t be there with us, and we were like, ‘Why!?’" Crump Sr. said. "He was shutting me down. He was very rude, arrogant, brash."

Demond Crump Jr. is 32 years old and has cerebral palsy. He's involved with the family business every step of the way.

"He goes everywhere with us. He travels with us," Crump Sr. said.

In an Instagram video he posted shortly after being asked to leave, Crump said, "He’s a part of our company. He’s my son. And my family and I find that to be very discriminatory."

Son with cerebral palsy asked to leave Cumberland Mall

Demond Crump Sr. and his son, Demond Jr., were at the mall in Cobb County, Georgia to promote their family business after winning a Morehouse College business pitch contest. While the family was setting up, a mall employee told Crump Sr. that his son, who has cerebral palsy, needed to leave. The mall apologized for it's poor communication, and invited the Crump family back.

Mall said it was poor communication

What they're saying:

The mall's ownership company, Brookfield Properties, called what happened a misunderstanding. "This was a deeply unfortunate situation, and we regret our poor communication that led to this misunderstanding. We reached out to Mr. Crump and have welcomed his family to return to our shopping center," a statement read. 

Family appalled by Cumberland Mall's actions

What they're saying:

Crump Sr. said this had never happened to his family before. "This is the first time ever in his life that we met someone that didn’t have compassion towards him," he said.

Crump family in their warehouse in Georgia. The family told FOX 5 News staff at the Cumberland Mall kicked them out because their son was in a wheelchair. 

FOX 5's Eric Mock talked to Crump Jr. His family said he responds best to yes or no questions. This is how their conversation went:

"Did that hurt your feelings?"

"Yeah, yeah."

"Do you think that was fair how they treated you?"

"No."

Crump Jr.'s mom, Qiana, said her son deserves better. "What he saw, Mr. McCoy [the manager], was a chair, and you didn’t see the human being in the chair," she said.

Family considering suing Cumberland Mall

What's next:

The Crump family said it is considering a lawsuit against the mall.