New York City Housing Authority Termination Procedures Violated Rights of Mentally Disabled Tenants

摘要

New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) tenancy termination procedures violated the due process rights of mentally disabled public housing tenants, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled in a class action suit. (Blatch v. Hernandez, No. 97CIV.3918(LTS)(HBP), 2005 WL 735932 (S.D.N.Y.), March 30, 2005) However, the court found no violation in the case of occupants who were not tenants of record, holding that they had no rights in public housing that were protected by the Fourteenth Amendment's Due Process Clause. The plaintiffs, representing a class of mentally disabled public housing tenants and occupants who have been subject to NYCHA eviction procedures, contended that the procedures violated the Due Process Clause as well as Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Fair Housing Amendments Act (collectively, the disability rights statutes).