On June 30, 2014, Legal Aid of North Carolina’s Fair Housing Project and Greensboro attorney Craig Hensel filed a motion asking a U.S. district court to prevent a nonprofit housing group from retaliating against eight women who say the group’s employees extorted sex in exchange for facilitating their participation in a federal housing subsidy program. Legal …
News
Pinehurst Settles Discrimination Case Over Affordable Housing
On June 4, 2014, the Village of Pinehurst agreed to settle a fair housing discrimination claim brought by developers and residents over the Village’s refusal to allow an affordable housing project to be developed for senior citizens. As part of the settlement, the Village will agree to make the zoning changes necessary for the 56-unit development …
15th Anniversary of Olmsted Decision
Fifteen years ago this month — on June 22, 1999 — the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in the case of Olmstead v. L.C. (“Olmsted“), finding that the unjustified segregation of persons with disabilities constitutes discrimination in violation of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This landmark Supreme Court decision requires states …
Rhode Island City Sues Santander Bank for Redlining
On May 29, 2014, the City of Providence, Rhode Island, filed a lawsuit in federal court against Santander Bank, N.A., accusing the bank of discrimination in mortgage lending. The City alleges that since 2009, Santander has deliberately discriminated by refusing to make prime mortgage loans available in minority neighborhoods, in violation of the federal Fair Housing Act. Since it …
Justice Department Increases Civil Monetary Penalties for Fair Housing Violations
On March 28, 2014, the U.S. Department of Justice published a notice increasing the civil monetary penalties for violations of the Fair Housing Act. Under the new rule, which applies to violations that occur on or after April 28, 2014, the maximum civil penalty for a first violation has increased from $55,000 to $75,000, and for subsequent violations …
Pelham, NC, Landlord Order to Pay $36,000 for Race Discrimination
On April 10, 2014, a Virginia landlord with property in Pelham, NC, was ordered to pay $36,000 for discriminating against prospective African American tenants. The landlord, John Sylvania Matthews, III, resides in Danville, VA, and rents property in both Virginia and North Carolina. The case arose in September 2013, when an African American woman called him about a …
City of Dubuque to End Discriminatory Residency Preference in Housing Program
On April 15, 2014, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that it had reached an agreement with the City of Dubuque, Iowa, to settle allegations that the City discriminated against African Americans in the administration of its Housing Choice (“Section 8”) Voucher Program. In a 2011 review, HUD had found that …
Fair Housing & Sustainable Communities Conference, 4/24/14
Registration is now open for the Fair Housing and Sustainable Communities Conference, which will be held in Durham, North Carolina, on Thursday, April 24, 2014. The conference will take place at Golden Belt , 807 E. Main Street, Durham, NC 27701, from 8:30 am – 12:30 pm. The conference, including a continental breakfast, is free, but registration …
DOJ Issues Technical Assistance on ADA
On January 31, 2014, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that it has published two new technical assistance documents to assist individuals understand how the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) applies to their circumstances. The documents are: “Wheelchairs, Mobility Aids, and Other Power-Driven Mobility Devices,” which provides guidance on the DOJ’s 2010 regulations regarding the …
Study Finds Racial Discrimination in On-Line Advertising
A working paper released by two Harvard Business School professors found price discrimination in on-line listings on the Airbnb.com website, which advertises itself as “a trusted community marketplace for people to list, discover, and book unique accommodations around the world.” According to the study, African Americans who listed housing for rent in New York charged (and …