Skip to main content
DRAFT FOR ATTORNEY REVIEW — NOT FINAL

Stevens v. HOUSING AUTHORITY OF SOUTH BEND, IND., 663 F.3d 300 (2011)

Citation
Stevens v. HOUSING AUTHORITY OF SOUTH BEND, IND., 663 F.3d 300 (2011)
Parent Document
Stevens v. HOUSING AUTHORITY OF SOUTH BEND, IND., 663 F.3d 300 (2011)
Effective Date
2011-12-01

Other Sections in This Document (42)

Full Text

1,657 chars
C.
  Stevens next disputes the district court’s ruling in
favor of HASB on her claim of segregated housing. In her
complaint, Stevens alleges that the defendants and their
predecessors located her public housing complex in an
area of South Bend that is inhabited primarily by African-
American persons. She asserts that the location of the
property segregated her and her sons because of race, in
violation of Section 3604(b) of the Fair Housing Act.
Stevens’ evidence in support of this claim consists solely
of her personal observation that the residents of the
apartment complex were primarily African-American. It
is undisputed that the public housing complex in
which Stevens lived was constructed in 1961, and so the
site was selected approximately forty-seven years
before Stevens brought her claim. The district court
found that the claim was untimely and also unsup-
ported by relevant evidence. The court also found that
the claim failed as a matter of law because actions
under Section 3604(b) of the Fair Housing Act must
concern access to housing and not post-acquisition
claims of discrimination. Stevens contends that her
claim is timely because it is based on a continuing viola-
tion, and that her own testimony that HASB housing was
segregated was sufficient to defeat summary judgment.
  Section 3604(b) provides that it shall be unlawful to
“discriminate against any person in the terms, conditions,
or privileges of sale or rental of a dwelling, or in the
provision of services or facilities in connection therewith,
because of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, or
22                                              No. 10-2724