Housing manager denies racism charges
- Yabha
“I’m not a racist,” is what one Marshall County landowner said after the federal Housing and Urban Development agency named him in a housing discrimination lawsuit.
The paperwork says the complainants claim their water was turned off and they were forced to leave because their landlord opposed interracial dating. But land manager Phillip Maze said they were evicted because of their breach of contract, not because of their color.
“This is not a racial issue,” Phillip Maze said after being slapped with this discrimination charge.
His previous tenants contacted HUD after they were evicted earlier this year.
“We’ve learned that the rental manager, objecting to the choice of a person they were dating, turned off the water, and forced the family out,” said Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity John Trasviña. “His subsequent statements to our investigator made clear that there was racially involved [actions].”
But Maze said that isn’t true. He said he evicted the complainant because of breach of contract. No lease was signed, but Maze said they reached a verbal agreement.
Three adults and one child were to live inside the residence. But as months passed, a total of seven people and a dog were living inside the home.
“This is a small house trailer; its not made to house seven people,” Maze said. “There’s just too many people in the house.”
On top of that, Maze said the tenants were behind on their rent, defaced the property, and even tried to steal pieces of property. Maze said he told them he’d had enough, and agreed on a date with the tenant to fix his requests. When they didn’t comply, his only choice was simple eviction.
Maze said he and his mother, “…furnished the water down here. The thing is, if the rent’s paid we furnish the water. If the rent’s not paid, I cut the water off.”
WAFF 48 News was unable to contact the plaintiff because their name was not included in the documents made available. HUD officials said the plaintiff will decide if the proceedings will be brought in front of an administrative law judge or in federal court.
If found guilty, Maze will have to pay relief to the tenants and pay a civil penalty.
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