DC Attorney General Sues City Housing Authority

• June 9th 2020

by UrbanTurf Staff

DC Attorney General Karl Racine filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against the District of Columbia Housing Authority (DCHA). 

The lawsuit does not focus on the disrepair that many public housing buildings have fallen into around the city, but rather on the drug and firearm-related issues around the city's public housing. 

The Attorney General's office noted that over the last year and a half, the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) has responded to over 5,270 incidents at ten public housing properties in the city. The office said that action was taken after resident complaints and notices from the Attorney General's office, including recommendations to increase security presence, lighting, and security cameras, did not receive responses from DCHA.

“District law requires building owners such as DCHA to maintain their properties and take reasonable precautions to protect their tenants and properties from crime,” Racine said in a statement. “In response to complaints from residents, our office repeatedly warned DCHA about dangerous and illegal activity at their properties, putting tenants—especially children, seniors, and residents with disabilities—at risk. Following DCHA’s inaction, the Office of the Attorney General filed suit to force the agency to make reasonable, but critical, improvements in the maintenance and security of the properties.”

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/dc-attorney-general-sues-city-housing-authority/16934.