Attorney General Brnovich Announces Fair Housing Act Lawsuit Against Mobile Home Community

MESA - Attorney General Mark Brnovich announced today that the Civil Rights Division of the Arizona Attorney General’s Office (CRD) has filed an Arizona Fair Housing Act lawsuit against Brentwood Southern, LLC, d/b/a Brentwood Southern Mobile Home Community, and Kingsley Management Corporation (Defendants). Under the Arizona Fair Housing Act, it is unlawful for a person or entity to discriminate against individuals with disabilities in the terms and conditions of their housing. It also is illegal to refuse to provide a reasonable accommodation to a person with a disability if that accommodation is necessary to provide the person with an equal opportunity to enjoy the dwelling of their choice.

“Every individual is entitled to fair and equal access to housing,” said Attorney General Mark Brnovich. “Our office takes access to fair housing seriously and this lawsuit should serve as a reminder to all housing providers to meet their obligations under the Arizona Civil Rights Act.”

Shelley Graves is an Arizona resident with a disability who uses an emotional support animal, a dog named Chase, to mitigate the symptoms of her disability. On April 29, 2019, Graves attempted to purchase a mobile home and lease land at Brentwood Southern Mobile Home Community in Mesa. Graves’ offer to purchase the home was accepted, but the Defendants’ agent refused to consider Graves’ application to lease the underlying land because Graves had an emotional support animal and the home was located in the “no pet zone” of the community.

The CRD's lawsuit also alleges that Defendants refused to provide Graves a reasonable accommodation allowing her to lease the land where the mobile home was located. The lawsuit further alleges that the Defendants violated the Arizona Fair Housing Act by refusing to accept Graves’s application and refusing to provide her with a reasonable accommodation because of her disability.
 
April is Fair Housing Month and 2021 marks the 53rd anniversary of the Fair Housing Act, which was signed into law on April 11, 1968, by President Lyndon B. Johnson. The Fair Housing Act prohibits housing discrimination because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, or familial status.
 
In Fiscal Year 2020, the CRD investigated 2,271 allegations of discrimination and obtained a total of $1,020,628.46 in monetary relief for aggrieved parties.  The CRD also secured agreements for a wide variety of injunctive relief to proactively alleviate future civil rights violations and for future monitoring.
 
The mission of the CRD is to enforce civil rights laws, increase public awareness of civil rights, provide dispute resolution services, and offer community services throughout the state. You may also find out more about the CRD, the process of filing a complaint and review frequently asked questions by viewing the Civil Rights pamphlet in English and Spanish.

If you believe you’ve been discriminated against in housing, employment, public accommodations, or voting, please contact our office at (602) 542-5263 or submit an intake questionnaire at www.azag.gov/complaints/civil-rights.

Copy of lawsuit here.