West Baltimore seniors and tenants with disabilities just sent a very expensive message to their landlords: if you make people live with mold, vermin, and no heat, it can come back to bite you in court.
Two Baltimore juries have ordered landlords to pay more than $1.4 million to five current and former residents of two apartment complexes in West Baltimore after finding that the properties were plagued by persistent, unlivable conditions and operated without required city rental licenses. The plaintiffs, many of whom live in federally subsidized units, told jurors about chronic mold, mice and cockroach infestations, unsecured doors and apartments that went without heat. Maryland Legal Aid, which represented the tenants, said the lawsuits sought refunds of unlawfully collected rent along with punitive and emotional distress damages.
In separate trials held on Jan. 28 and Feb. 2, jurors awarded a combined $1,434,981 against Reginald and Marguerite Daniels Housing for the Elderly and the Bellevieu-Manchester apartments, both in West Baltimore, according to The Daily Record. The verdicts, issued in Baltimore City Circuit Court before Judge Paul Cucuzzella, included reimbursements for rent along with additional damages for emotional harm and punitive purposes. The same outlet reported that Maryland Legal Aid said property manager Towner Management Company was removed from the case in late January after reaching an amicable settlement…