JUSTICE DEPARTMENT FILES LAWSUIT AGAINST LAS VEGAS APARTMENT COMPLEX OWNER REGARDING ALLEGED FAIR HOUSING ACT VIOLATIONS

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Department of Justice today announced it has filed a housing discrimination lawsuit against the owner and rental agent of the Bonanza Springs Apartments in Las Vegas, Nevada alleging discrimination on the basis of race, color disability, and family status.

The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada, names as defendants the corporate owners of Bonanza Springs Apartments, LLC; Temple 1991 Revocable Trust d/b/a Bonanza Springs Apartments; and a rental agent.

The complaint alleges that the defendants steered African American apartment seekers to less desirable apartments or represented that there were no apartments available at Bonanza Springs Apartments, while telling white applicants - at the same time - that apartments were available for rent. In addition, the complaint also alleges that defendants failed to make reasonable accommodations to persons with disabilities, refused to rent to families with children, and intimidated and interfered with the rights of individuals who complained to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) regarding their fair housing rights.

The suit, initiated following a referral from HUD, seeks an order prohibiting the defendants from engaging in unlawful housing discrimination at Bonanza Springs Apartments and other residential complexes they own or manage, and seeks monetary damages for victims, as well as payment of a civil penalty.

Individuals who believe that they may have been victims of housing should call the Justice Department's Housing and Civil Enforcement Section at 1-800-896-7743, Extension 996.

For more information about the Civil Rights Division, and the laws it enforces, go to www.usdoj.gov/crt.

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