ABC News
City settles discrimination lawsuit from Black and Latino renters in California
The Justice Department announced a landmark civil rights settlement Wednesday with the city of Hesperia, California, and its sheriff's department over allegations they illegally discriminated against Black and Latino renters. Under the terms of the settlement, which requires final sign off from a federal judge, the city and sheriff's department must pay nearly $1 million and fully repeal a crime-free housing ordinance that mandates landlords to evict those who police reported had been involved in criminal activity, even if the offense was minor or if it didn't result in formal charges, an arrest or conviction. An analysis by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development found that under such programs, Black renters are almost four times more likely to be evicted and Latino renters are 29% more likely to be evicted than white renters.
