Article 78 appeal to vacate penalty of housing termination granted
Matter of Vazquez v New York City Housing Authority
Petitioner, Anita Vazquez, commenced this Article 78 appeal against the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) to review the determination terminating her public housing tenancy on the ground of nondesirability. Petitioner was charged with chronic rent delinquency and later non-desirability based on charges of unauthorized use of an ATM card. The decision to termination petitioner’s tenancy was in response to her guilty plea to this felony offense.
The penalty imposed on petitioner was disproportionate to the offense considering that petitioner is current in all rent due, has a source of income from SSI and public assistance, and has paid full restitution to the complaining witness and complied with the conditions of her probation. Additionally, petitioner has no prior criminal record and her criminal conduct was an isolated occurrence. Terminating petitioner’s tenancy considering her specific circumstances is shocking to the judicial conscience and sense of fairness.
Accordingly, the Court vacated the penalty of termination and remanded respondent for imposition of a lesser penalty.
