U.S. District Judge Charles Norgle said the 2002 suit seeking compensation from nine defendants including railroads, banks, cigarette makers and insurance companies lacked merit and belonged in the political realm, not in the courts.
In 2004, Norgle dismissed the suit but allowed the plaintiffs to refile with an amended complaint. They did, accusing the companies of violating consumer protection laws because their current businesses were built on profits from buying and selling African-American slaves.
