Local News in Brief : Court Rules in Favor of Evicted Tenant
A Salvation Army bell-ringer who was forced out of his Sepulveda apartment after he was late on his rent received an undisclosed settlement from a lawsuit he filed against his landlord, his attorney said Wednesday.
Robert Barry, 60, said he returned from collecting money for the Salvation Army on Dec. 21 to find the locks changed on the door of his one-room apartment in the 9400 block of Sepulveda Boulevard. He said he spent the next couple of weeks sleeping in a homeless shelter or in his car.
The law requires a landlord to notify a tenant three days before eviction that he must leave. Then the landlord must go to court to force the eviction, said Barry’s attorney, Michael F. Duran.
Landlord George Chang did neither, Duran said.
Barry filed suit earlier this month asking for $25,000 in damages. He also asked that he be allowed to return to his apartment.
On Jan. 5, a judge ordered Chang to allow Barry to return.
Barry worked as a Salvation Army bell-ringer from Thanksgiving through Christmas.
Duran said he is not allowed to disclose terms of the settlement.
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