United States v. Hylton

944 F.Supp.2d 176

UNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff,andTaika Bilbo, et al., Interveners,

v.Clifton HYLTON, et al., Defendants.

Civil Action No. 3:11–CV–1543 (JCH).

United States District Court, D. Connecticut.

May 8, 2013.

Ndidi N. Moses, U.S. Attorney's Office, New Haven, CT, for Plaintiff.

Timothy Bennett–Smyth, Hartford, CT, for Interveners.

Elio C.C. Morgan, Law Office of Elio Morgan, Bridgeport, CT, for Defendants.

AMENDED BENCH RULING¹

JANET C. HALL, District Judge.

The United States of America (“the government”) brings this action on behalf of Jermaine Bilbo (“Mr. Bilbo”), Taika Bilbo (“Mrs. Bilbo”), and DeMechia Wilson (“Ms. Wilson”) (collectively “the intervenors”), to enforce the Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. § 3601, et seq. The action is brought against Merline Hylton (“Ms. Hylton”), Clifton Hylton (“Mr. Hylton”), and Hylton Real Estate Management (“HREM”) as the owner and managers of a property located at 5 Townline Road, Windsor Locks, CT.

The Complaint (Doc. No. 1) alleges that the defendants violated the Fair Housing Act in three ways: (1) by refusing to negotiate for the rental of 5 Townline Road to Ms. Wilson and her two minor children because of their race, in violation of section 3604(a) of title 42 of the United States Code; (2) by discriminating against Mr. and Mrs. Bilbo and Ms. Wilson and her minor children in the terms, conditions, or privileges of renting a dwelling because of race, in violation of section 3604(b); and (3) by making discriminatory statements based on race regarding the rental of 5 Townline Road, in violation of section 3604(c).

I. FINDINGS OF FACT

Mr. and Mrs. Hylton are married and both are black and of West–Indian descent. They both own multiple properties in Connecticut. Mr. Hylton is the sole owner, officer, and director of Hylton Real Estate Management, Inc. (HREM). HREM is a property manager and was created approximately five to seven years ago. A property manager's role is to interview, select, and correspond with tenants, collect rent, and repair properties. Mrs. Hylton has no involvement in HREM. Mr. Hylton opened a checking account in the name of HREM, and he sometimes pays his mortgages using that checking account, although sometimes he uses a personal account. Mr. Hylton started HREM in part to organize his real estate holdings and also, in part, to protect himself from liability. From June 2009 to June 2010, Mr. Hylton was engaged in the business of renting dwellings.

Mrs. Hylton owns 5 Townline Road. She had no involvement in renting the house or in interacting with the renters (both the Bilbos and the Joneses, the current tenants). She had Mr. Hylton handle all aspects of the rental. He identified himself as the person of contact for potential renters, he showed the house, he collected the application, he provided and picked up the lease, and he collected rent. However, Mr. Hylton discussed with her all of the actions he was taking. Mr. Hylton did not act alone in renting the property.

The properties owned by the Hyltons are: (1) 6 Meg Way, Windsor Locks, CT (owned jointly by Mr. and Mrs. Hylton); (2) 73–75 Pine Street, Manchester, CT (owned by an LLC, with Mr. Hylton as the sole member); (3) 92–94 Baltimore Street, Hartford, CT (owned by an LLC, with Mr. Hylton as the sole member); (4) 9-11 Benton Street, Hartford, CT (owned by an LLC, with Mr. Hylton and HREM as the sole members); (5) 27 Norfolk Street, Hartford, CT (owned by an LLC, with Mr. Hylton as the sole member); (6) 9-11 Lilley Street, Manchester, CT (owned by an LLC, with Mr. Hylton as the sole member); (7) 381 Sigourney Street, Hartford, CT (owned by Mrs. Hylton); (8) 5 Towline Road, Windsor Locks, CT (owned by Mrs. Hylton). Most of Mr. and Mrs. Hylton's tenants are Puerto Rican or black and a high majority of tenants (between 80 and 99%) receive Section 8 housing.

Mr. and Mrs. Hylton were living at 5 Townline Road until they purchased a house at 6 Meg Way in Windsor Locks, CT, on September 10, 2008. They tried to sell 5 Townline Road, but were unable to do so. After trying to sell 5 Townline Road to no avail, the Hyltons offered the house for rent by posting an ad on craigslist.com. The ad directed interested applicants to contact Mr. Hylton about the property.

Mrs. Bilbo responded to the ad by calling Mr. Hylton. Mr. and Mrs. Bilbo are married with three children. Mr. Bilbo is African–American. Mrs. Bilbo is white. On April 14, 2010, Mr. Hylton met with the Bilbos to show them the house at 5 Townline Road. Mr. Hylton gave the Bilbos a tour of the property, answered their questions, and provided the Bilbos with a rental application. The Bilbos completed the rental application at the property and provided it to Mr. Hylton. They did not provide, nor did Mr. Hylton request, supporting documentation to confirm the information provided on the rental application. The rental application signed by the Bilbos carried the name “Hylton Real Estate Management, Inc.” At no point while viewing, applying for, or renting 5 Townline Road did Mr. or Mrs. Bilbo speak with Mrs. Hylton. However, Mr. Hylton consulted with Mrs. Hylton as to renting the house to the Bilbos.

The Bilbos moved into the house at 5 Townline Road shortly before May 1, 2010. Mr. Hylton left a lease in the house for them to complete, which he later picked up. The lease bore the name “Hylton Real Estate Management, Inc.” at the top. Mr. and Mrs. Hylton both signed the lease (as did the Bilbos). The Bilbos paid a security deposit of $1,750.

Before Mr. and Mrs. Bilbo rented 5 Townline Road, they had considered purchasing a house. Around the second week of May 2010, their mortgage broker advised them that they could obtain a loan from the Department of Veterans Affairs because Mr. Bilbo is a veteran. Mr. and Mrs. Bilbo began looking in the area and found a house they wanted to purchase on May 28, 2010. Their offer on the house was approved on May 29, 2010. On May 29, 2010, Mr. Bilbo called Mr. Hylton to inform him that he and his wife needed to break their lease. Mr. Hylton was upset and informed Mr. Bilbo that he wanted him to buy out the lease, which extended until May 2011. Mr. Bilbo sent Mr. Hylton a letter, on or around June 1, 2010, informing him in writing that he expected to close on a house on June 30, 2010, and would no longer be able to rent 5 Townline Road.

Mr. and Mrs. Bilbo decided they would find someone to sublet the home for Mr. Hylton. On June 18, 2010, the Bilbos posted an advertisement on craigslist.com listing 5 Townline Road for rent for $1,750 per month. The advertisement listed the house available as of July 1, 2010. Mr. and Mrs. Bilbo started showing the property. It was at this time that they reviewed their lease and realized that the lease required the Bilbos to obtain prior written consent to sublet the property. The Bilbos decided to continue showing the house and hope that the Hyltons would agree that it was more profitable to have someone else move in.

Ms. Wilson contacted Mrs. Bilbo on June 21, 2010, about the property. Ms. Wilson is African–American and has two children. She was living in the North End of Hartford, Connecticut at the time, with her children and mother. Ms. Wilson was interested in the house because it was only 10 minutes away from her job and the school system was comparable to the schools her children attended—schools which are outside of Hartford because Ms. Wilson would not send her children to the less advantageous Hartford schools. Ms. Wilson sent her children to Bolton Elementary and Middle School as part of the regional school choice program.

Ms. Wilson went to view 5 Townline Road on June 22, 2010. Mr. Bilbo showed her the house and provided her with an application. Mr. Bilbo thought Ms. Wilson would make an excellent tenant and contacted Mr. Hylton to inform him that he found a viable subtenant. Mr. Hylton said he was unhappy that the Bilbos were breaking the lease and that he had bad experiences with subtenants before. Mr. Bilbo told Mr. Hylton that he felt very comfortable with Ms. Wilson and that she could afford the rent, had references saying she never paid her rent late, and was looking for a long-term rental.

Mr. Hylton agreed to sublet the property to Ms. Wilson, but said he would continue to receive rent from the Bilbos (who would receive rent from Ms. Wilson). Mr. Bilbo asked Mr. Hylton to provide written permission as required by the lease. Mr. Hylton then asked Mr. Bilbo whether Ms. Wilson is black or white. When Mr. Bilbo told Mr. Hylton that Ms. Wilson is black, Mr. Hylton said he did not want too many black people at the property. Mr. Hylton told Mr. Bilbo that he only rented to him and his wife because Mrs. Bilbo is white, and “it was a good mix.” Mr. Hylton also said that the neighbors would not want too many black people in the neighborhood. He told Mr. Bilbo to try and find some good white people who could afford the property because Ms. Wilson was not going to be able to pay.

Mr. Bilbo was confused and upset by the conversation. He did not understand how Mr. Hylton could make such statements when he himself is black. Mr. Bilbo expects to face racism, but not from older black men who he presumes faced even worse incidents of discrimination than he. He was hurt and shocked by the conversation and upset that he had to play a role in rejecting Ms. Wilson because of her race. Mr. Bilbo called Ms. Wilson immediately after his conversation with Mr. Hylton and told her what happened and apologized that he would not be able to sublet to her. Ms. Wilson was confused by Mr. Hylton's reaction given Mr. Bilbo is black, and she was disappointed that she would have to start her rental search all over again. However, at the time, she considered it was a good thing she was rejected because she did not want to rent from someone who thinks like Mr. Hylton.

Mr. Bilbo next called his wife at work and posted on Facebook about what happened. Mrs. Bilbo was very upset...