Paula Deen Wins One: Racial Bias Claim Tossed

You know you've made it—or something like that—when both the New York Times and TMZ are covering you. Both publications, among a slew of others, report that a federal judge yesterday threw out the racial bias claim filed against Paula Deen by a former restaurant manager. (This, you'll recall, is the suit that brought Deen's use of the n-word to light and led to such memorable lines as "I is what I is.")

In a 20-page opinion, US District Court Judge William T. Moore Jr. ruled that Lisa Jackson, who is white, has no standing to sue Deen over the alleged mistreatment of black workers, even if she claims such alleged treatment offended her (the AP notes Jackson says she took personal offense because she has biracial nieces) and placed her under additional stress. Jackson, at best, "is an accidental victim of the alleged racial discrimination," Moore said in his ruling. TMZ's take: "Short story—Jackson ruined Paula with a bogus claim." Jackson’s pending sexual harassment allegations against Deen's brother are unaffected. (More Paula Deen stories.)