Low-income tenants claim sexual harassment by former landlord
October 25, 2006 MEDIA RELEASE (also see
Complaint
filed)
(Winston-Salem, NC) – Four former tenants filed a lawsuit against their
landlord in Superior Court due to repeated and ongoing sexual harassment that
they endured from him during their tenancies at the landlord’s facilities in
Winston-Salem.
 |
|
LANC Attorneys Liza Baron and Hazel Mack-Hilliard address the media
in Winston-Salem on October 25, 2006. |
The lawsuit, brought by attorneys with
Legal Aid of North Carolina
(LANC) and the
Legal Aid Society of
Northwest North Carolina, alleges that the tenants were groped and
propositioned by their landlord during their tenancies, all of which occurred
during the period from 2002 to 2005. All four tenants were single,
African-American females who lived separately and did not know each other before
contacting LANC.
“These tenants were victimized by unwanted sexual touching and other types
of harassment and exploitation from their landlord Robbie Watson,” said
Liza Baron, managing attorney in
LANC’s
Winston-Salem office. “They reported his actions separately to
us and did not know each other prior to consulting with us about it.
Unfortunately, many tenants are not aware that it is a serious violation of the
law for a landlord to proposition them or touch them in a sexual manner.
Tenants have legal rights to enforce if this happens to them, and damages to
pursue in court. Sexual harassment of women by their landlords is a
violation of their rights in the place where women should be most safe: at
home.”
The tenants’ former landlord, Robbie Watson, is a resident of Lexington, NC,
according to the lawsuit. He owns approximately 120 rental units in
Forsyth County. His tenants are primarily Section 8 tenants, which means
that they receive a subsidy from the federal government to help with their rent
payments, based on their income.
According to Hazel Mack Hilliard, LANC’s senior
managing attorney in Winston-Salem, “the worst part of what he did to these
tenants is the oppressive nature of his behavior and how he abused the position
of power he had over these tenants. Through his position as landlord to
subsidized tenants, he has direct access to the poorest people among us, and he
has abused that position of control and authority. What’s more, he gets
federal money which we as taxpayers pay him every month to help house the poor
among us, and he abuses that position by taking our money and exploiting the
people he’s supposed to help.”
According to the complaint, Watson cornered one of the plaintiffs in the
bathroom and fondled her, until she pushed him away and ran out of the bathroom.
Another plaintiff complained that Watson would always enter her house through
the side door that opened directly into her bedroom rather than by the front
door, touched her breasts multiple times and repeatedly asked her to have sex
with him. One of the plaintiffs actually recorded a conversation with
Watson in which he repeatedly asked her to have sexual relations with him.
Two of the plaintiffs complained that Watson exposed his genitalia to them.
“This man needs to be stopped,” stated
Jamiah Waterman, one of the LANC attorneys involved with the
case. “He has been preying on vulnerable people who do not often know
their full legal rights, and who are afraid of losing their housing subsidy if
they complain. We want to send him a strong message that this type of
predatory behavior is unacceptable, and that he cannot get away with it.”
“This is an outrage,” stated Stephen Hairston,
president of the Winston-Salem Chapter of the
NAACP. “This man’s tenants are mostly young, female, single and
African-American. Who knows how many others have been his victims?
We ask that all other victims of Robbie Watson step up and contact us to pursue
justice.”
The lawsuit seeks damages for violation of the Winston-Salem City Code,
state and federal Fair Housing Acts, assault, battery, breach of right to quiet
enjoyment of the premises, unfair debt collection, false imprisonment, negligent
infliction of emotional distress, unfair trade practices, and punitive damages.
It also seeks damages for unfit conditions in the rental premises and failure to
return or properly account for the tenants’ security deposits.
In addition to naming Robbie Watson as a defendant, the lawsuit also names
Watson’s wife, Shelbia Watson, and three limited liability corporations formed
by Watson. Shelbia Watson was co-owner of the rental properties before
they were sold during their tenancies to the limited liability corporations that
Mr. Watson formed.
The tenants are seeking unspecified monetary damages. The lawsuit was
filed on October 25.
Legal Aid of North Carolina
(LANC) is a statewide, nonprofit law firm that provides free legal services
in civil matters to eligible, low-income people in all 100 counties in North
Carolina through 24, geographically located offices in North Carolina.
LANC’s clients typically have an annual income of 125% or less of the federally
established poverty levels. The
LANC-Winston-Salem Office provides legal assistance low-income clients who
live in the six-county area (Davie, Forsyth, Iredell, Stokes, Surry and Yadkin
Counties) surrounding Winston-Salem, NC.
#
#
#
ATTACHMENT (Complaint):
CICELY JOHNSON, NADEAN MCMAHAN, ANNIE SEARCY, and MICHELLE WERTS, Plaintiffs v.
ROBBIE WATSON, SHELBIA WATSON, NORTHEND PROPERTIES, LLC, SOUTHSIDE PROPERTIES,
LLC, and MORNINGSIDE PROPERTIES, LLC, Defendants; filed October 25, 2006,
Superior Court, Forsyth County, NC.
#
#
#
CONTACTS:
Liza Baron (Managing Attorney, LANC-Winston-Salem Office)
Winston-Salem,
NC; 336-725-9162
Hazel Mack-Hilliard (Senior Managing Attorney, LANC-Winston-Salem
Office), Winston-Salem, NC; 336-725-9162
Stephen Hairston, (President, Winston-Salem NAACP Chapter,
Winston-Salem,
NC); 336-767-3470
Dock Kornegay (Director, Public Relations & Development, LANC)
Raleigh,
NC; 919-856-2564
Disclaimer
The materials contained on this website are for information and educational
purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. Please contact your
Legal Aid of North Carolina office or a private attorney if you need to speak to
an attorney regarding your particular situation. See our complete
disclaimer.
Mission Statement
Legal Aid of North Carolina is a statewide, nonprofit law firm that
provides free legal services in civil matters to low-income people in
order to ensure equal access to justice and to remove legal barriers
to economic opportunity.