SANTA ANA : Suit Alleges Bias by 4 Apartment Owners

The Fair Housing Council and a group of individuals who claim they suffered discrimination because of their race or because they have children have filed suit in Superior Court against the owners of four apartment complexes in Fullerton, Anaheim and Brea.

The same complaint was filed in May in federal court in Los Angeles, but a judge ruled that because the lawsuit alleged violations of state and federal laws, it must be heard first in Superior Court.

The Fair Housing Council has received about 15 complaints over the last five years regarding Le Chateau and Villa del Sol in Anaheim, La Casa Brea and Fullerton Palms Apartments, spokesman Cliff Dover said.

In the lawsuit, three families say they were either turned away because they have children, or that their rents were raised once their children were born. Three African-American students contend that they were turned away when they applied for apartments, although white applicants found vacancies at the same time.