[Cagdu] FW: USA: JUSTICE DEPARTMENT SETTLES GEORGIA LAWSUIT ALLEGING HOUSING DISCRIMINATION AGAINST GUIDE DOG USERS

Fri Sep 28 13:21:22 PDT 2007

From: K9Scoop at yahoogroups.com [mailto:K9Scoop at yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of
Laurie Mehta
Sent: Friday, September 28, 2007 9:02 AM
To: K9Scoop list
Subject: USA: JUSTICE DEPARTMENT SETTLES GEORGIA LAWSUIT ALLEGING HOUSING
DISCRIMINATION AGAINST GUIDE DOG USERS

JUSTICE DEPARTMENT SETTLES GEORGIA LAWSUIT ALLEGING
HOUSING
DISCRIMINATION AGAINST GUIDE DOG USERS

WASHINGTON - The Justice Department announced today
that it has
reached a settlement with the owners and managers of
the Hickory
Plantation and Willow Way Apartments, both located in
Camden County,
Ga., resolving a lawsuit filed by the Department
alleging discrimination
against persons with disabilities. According to the
complaint, which
was filed simultaneously with the consent decree in
federal district
court in Savannah, Ga., Defendants Herbert Bolt, Betty
Bolt, and Herbert
Bolt, Jr. violated the Fair Housing Act by refusing to
rent an apartment
at Hickory Plantation to a visually impaired
individual who used a guide
dog.

Under the agreement, which must still be approved by
the court,
the defendants will pay $35,000 to compensate victims
at Hickory
Plantation and Willow Way, pay a $20,000 civil penalty
to the U.S.
government, establish and follow non-discriminatory
tenancy procedures,
undergo fair housing training, and file reports with
the government.

"Individuals who use guide dogs are entitled to the
same housing
opportunities as people who don't," said Rena J.
Comisac, Acting
Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights
Division. "Landlords
must understand that they have a responsibility to
make reasonable
accommodations for persons with disabilities, and
where they fail to do
so, the Department will enforce the law."

The Department conducted its investigation using
fair-housing
testers - individuals who pose as renters for purposes
of gathering
information about possible discriminatory practices in
the rental of
apartments.

This case is another example of the success of
Operation Home
Sweet Home, a concentrated initiative of the
Department of Justice to
expose and eliminate housing discrimination in
America. This initiative
was inspired by the plight of displaced victims of
Hurricane Katrina who
were suddenly forced to find new places to live.
Operation Home Sweet
Home is not limited to the areas hit by Hurricane
Katrina and targets
housing discrimination across the country. More
information about
Operation Home Sweet Home is available at the Justice
Department Web
site at
http://www.usdoj. <http://www.usdoj.gov/fairhousing.> gov/fairhousing.

Individuals who believe that they may have been the
victim of
housing discrimination at Hickory Plantation or Willow
Way should call
the Justice Department's Housing and Civil Enforcement
Section at
1-800-896-7743 (option number 93), or send an email to
fairhousing@ <mailto:fairhousing%40usdoj.gov> usdoj.gov.

Since Jan. 1, 2001, the Justice Department's Civil
Rights
Division has filed 238 cases to enforce the Fair
Housing Act, 112 of
which have alleged discrimination based on disability.
http://www.usdoj. <http://www.usdoj.gov/crt.> gov/crt.

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