06/21/2010

News / Division on Civil Rights Finds Probable Cause in Case of Landlord, Real Estate Agency Accused of Denying Disabled Renter with Service Dog

TRENTON – The Division on Civil Rights announced today it has issued a Finding of Probable Cause against a Hudson County apartment building owner and a real estate agency that lists his rental units for allegedly refusing housing to a couple who own a medically-prescribed service dog.

Named as Respondents in the Finding of Probable Cause are landlord Ray Saoud, who owns a nine-unit apartment building on Maple Street in Secaucus, and Peterson Real Estate, also of Secaucus.

The two are accused of unlawfully discriminating against prospective renters Khalill and Jackie Smart. Jackie Smart is a breast cancer patient also diagnosed as having post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of her illness and treatment. She and her husband sought to rent one of Saoud’s advertised apartments in December 2009, but were denied. The denial came after Khalill Smart advised an agent of Peterson Real Estate that the couple intended to live with an emotional support dog prescribed for Jackie Smart by her treating physician to help deal with her illness and related mental disability.

A Finding of Probable Cause does not resolve a civil rights complaint. Rather, it means the State has concluded its preliminary investigation and determined there is sufficient evidence to support a reasonable suspicion the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (LAD) has been violated.

“There is no ‘second class citizenship’ for people with disabilities, and there is no room in the rental housing industry for the type of discrimination alleged here,” said Division Director Chinh Q. Le. “ Neither landlords nor real estate agents may refuse housing to prospective tenants because of their medically-prescribed service animals without first showing that such animals impose an undue hardship.”

According to the Finding of Probable Cause, an agent of Peterson Real Estate showed Khalill Smart a one-bedroom apartment advertised by Saoud on December 19, 2009. Khalill Smart advised the agent he and his wife were interested in renting the unit. However, when Khalill Smart noted that his wife required a service dog to assist with her disability, the agent allegedly responded that the landlord might not be willing to rent to them because of the dog.

Subsequently, both Peterson Real Estate and Saoud allegedly failed to respond to follow-up telephone calls made by Khalill Smart.

Khalill Smart, who is African-American, initially alleged that race also played a role in the denial, but the Division’s investigation found insufficient evidence to support such a claim, according to the Finding of Probable Cause .

However, in its answer to the Smarts’ Complaint, Peterson Real Estate did acknowledge that “this matter was never about racial discrimination, it was about a dog.” The agency also claimed that it passed along to Saoud documentation, provided by the Smarts, that the dog at issue was a medically-prescribed service animal.

The Division’s own investigation established that Peterson Real Estate received a fax on Dec. 22, 2009 from Khalill Smart. The fax was directed to the same agent who had shown him Soud’s apartment. It contained literature on the right of tenants to keep emotional support animals in “no pets” housing, as well as a note from Jackie Smart’s radiation oncologist confirming that her condition meets the definition of a disability under several different laws, and that a service dog has been prescribed to help her cope with her disability.

Ray Saoud, who admitted to telling the real estate agent he would rent to the Smarts as long as they did not have a dog, denied ever receiving documentation that Jackie Smart’s dog was a medically-prescribed service animal.

The LAD provides that each Respondent found to have committed a violation is subject to a penalty of up to $10,000. The LAD also provides for other remedies, including compensatory damages and injunctive relief, such as changes in the employer's policies and management/staff training.

Now that the Division has issued Findings of Probable Cause, the case will be referred for a process known as Conciliation. If Conciliation is not successful, the matter will be referred to an Administrative Law Judge for a hearing on the merits, which is a non-jury trial. The Administrative Law Judge will then issue a written Initial Decision.

Division Director Le thanked State Investigator Carlos Hernandez for conducting the investigation and Elizabeth Russian, Manager of the Housing Investigations Unit, for supervising it. Director Le also credited Legal Specialist Edward Haas for reviewing the Finding of Probable Cause.

http://www.nj.gov/oag/newsreleases10/pr20100621a.html

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