Section 8 Landlords File Suit Against Police

By Evan Mix

Published on May 20, 2009

The City of Antioch, located about 40 miles east of San Francisco, and its police department are facing a civil rights lawsuit filed by a family of landlords who rent property to low-income tenants who receive so-called Section 8 housing subsidies from the federal government. The family claims the police department violated their civil rights.

According to the lawsuit, officers from the police department's "Community Action Team" used rough and illegal tactics to intimidate the family of property owner Riaz Patras to evict a number of their tenants, causing them emotional distress, humiliation, loss of privacy, and lost rental income. Officers allegedly searched the Patras home without a warrant on multiple occasions, and specifically demanded that the Patras family evict their African-American tenants.

The Community Action Team works with the local housing authority to investigate and regulate Section 8 housing properties in the community. The unit has faced regular complaints from Section 8 tenants and landlords since its inception in 2006 for allegedly unfairly targeting African-Americans.

Comment on this article →