Last month, LawNewz.com reported on the Texas pastor who sued Whole Foods, accusing the grocery story of selling him a cake with a homophobic slur on it. The supermarket chain responded with a countersuit, insisted that they did no such thing, and provided video footage that they claimed proved the case. Well, Pastor Jordan Brown finally withdrew his lawsuit on Monday, confirming that it was a hoax all along, KVUE reported.
Brown, who is openly gay, had ordered a cake from Whole Foods with the phrase “Love Wins” written on it. He claimed that when he received it, it also included a slur, and he sued. Now, he admits that the slur wasn’t on there when he got it from the store.
Brown acknowledged in a statement that Whole Foods “did nothing wrong.” He apologized to the store and the bakery employee, and said he should not have used the media the way he did. He also recognized the harm a fake story could do to legitimate claims. “I apologize to the LGBT community for diverting attention from real issues,” Brown said. “I also want to apologize to my partner, my family, my church family, and my attorney.”
Whole Foods has also dropped their lawsuit against Brown. In a statement, they said:
We’re very pleased that the truth has come to light. Given Mr. Brown’s apology and public admission that his story was a complete fabrication, we see no reason to move forward with our counter suit to defend the integrity of our brand and team members.
