Sterling Hit With Bias Suit

Donald T. Sterling, owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, is a real estate mogul with more than 100 apartment complexes in Southern California. Over the years, he has become a well-known figure to tenant attorneys who have challenged management practices at his properties.

Those concerns came to a head this week when the Housing Rights Center, which investigates allegations of discrimination in housing under contract with the city of Los Angeles, filed a federal housing discrimination lawsuit against Sterling.

The suit, filed on behalf of six African American tenants, alleges that Sterling discriminated against blacks, Latinos and disabled people at two Los Angeles apartment buildings.

Barak Lurie, Sterling’s general counsel, called the lawsuit frivolous. But Gary Rhoades of the Housing Rights Center said the suit involves a “widespread problem” at Sterling’s buildings.

Over the last two years, the Housing Rights Center, the cities of Los Angeles and Santa Monica and local fair housing groups have received complaints from black, Latino and disabled tenants living in Sterling properties, Rhoades said. The complaints allege discrimination and failure to maintain habitable dwellings, according to the lawsuit.

“It’s a very strong goal here at the city to make sure people not only not encounter discrimination, but if they do, it’s investigated and there are remedies to address it,” said Suzette Flynn, planning and economic analyst for the Los Angeles Housing Department.

Sterling is no stranger to tenant complaints or legal action. In 2001, he settled a case with Santa Monica after allegations that he harassed tenants in his rent-controlled buildings there. As part of the settlement, he did not admit wrongdoing but paid $25,000, which his attorney later called a charitable contribution.

In the mid-1980s, his rent hikes in Beverly Hills helped bring rent control to that city at the request of angry tenants.

The current case began after Sterling bought a 225-unit apartment building on Irolo Street in Los Angeles and another building on Ardmore Street.

According to the lawsuit, Sterling visited the Irolo building in May 2002 and held a meeting with management. During the meeting, Sterling allegedly told managers that he preferred Korean tenants and wanted his staff to rent only to Koreans.

According to the suit, Sterling “said he did not like Hispanics or blacks as tenants,” telling his surprised onlookers that “Hispanics smoke, drink and just hang around the building.”

“We have strong evidence to back each of those claims,” Rhoades said. “Our investigators have talked to a lot of witnesses,” including two former employees and a current employee.

The suit alleges that after that meeting, the building management refused to make repairs for African American or Latino tenants and refused to accept rent from black tenants, then filed suit against them for failing to pay rent.

Management also began inviting only Korean American tenants to meetings, and security guards at the building began requiring black tenants to sign in, as if they were guests, the suit alleges.

Similar claims were made by tenants at the Ardmore building.

Sterling changed the name of the Irolo Street building from Mark Wilshire Towers to Korean World Towers. The building on Ardmore became Wilshire Korean Towers.

The named plaintiffs, Karlene Henry, Thomas Brown, Daryl Williams, Dianne Wesley, Aubrey Franklin and Kandyce Jones, declined to comment on the suit.

The suit alleges that the Irolo building is not wheelchair-accessible and that the staff denied a request from Wesley, who uses a wheelchair, for a parking space. Jones, an elderly woman who is blind, had never missed a rent payment but was threatened with eviction, the lawsuit alleges.

The suit alleges that staff members at the properties who were not Korean Americans were eventually fired.

“With these practices, defendants have isolated, alienated and humiliated the now dwindling populations of African American and Latino tenants still living in the 405 units at the two properties,” the lawsuit says.