Santa Monica Daily Press
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Wednesday, September 3, 2003 ❑ Page 5
LOCAL
Civil lawsuit against local landlord will continue LANDLORD, from page 1 and pay $5,530 in fines. “The landlord’s pattern of behavior was clear ... and it was completely against the law,” said Deputy City Attorney Adam Radinsky, who added that the plea offer had been available to Liska for months. As part of her plea, Liska was convicted of one count of discrimination based on occupancy by a minor child and one count of intimidating or coercing a tenant. Both charges are misdemeanors. Liska also must pay City Hall $500 to take a course in fair housing practices and pay for an advertisement that promotes them. Liska was charged under the city’s tenant harassment ordinance, which was passed by the City Council in 1995 to protect tenants from landlords seeking to profit illegally from vacancy decontrol, which allows landlords to raise the rent on rent-controlled units when tenants move out. Hundreds of complaints have been filed under the ordinance and the vast majority have been resolved out of court, Radinsky said. City Hall’s criminal charges followed a civil lawsuit filed in January by the Vivancos and Aricka Traylor, an AfricanAmerican mother of five, who claim Liska discriminated against and harassed them based on their race. Traylor said she wanted to rent an apartment in the building but was told by Liska that she doesn’t rent to families with children, the lawsuit alleges. The Vivancos, who still occupy their two-bedroom unit with their four kids, allege Liska has repeatedly overcharged them, yelled at their children and didn’t allow them to play outside. The suit also alleges that Liska threatened to evict them if they had any more children. The Vivancos occupy the last rent-controlled apartment in the six-unit building and are the last Latino family to live there, according to the lawsuit. Liska sent the Vivancos a 30-day notice in December ordering the family to
move out of the apartment. The eviction notice alleged that the family is disruptive to their neighbors because their children play outside, kick balls against the apartment walls and play loud music. Liska and Eric Meller, her attorney, couldn’t be reached for comment. They have previously declined to comment on the case. Dario Navarro, an attorney in the civil case, said the families are pleased that Liska didn’t fight the criminal charges. “They’re elated, they’re extremely happy,” he said. “They feel partially vindicated, but of course they haven’t been paid damages.” Radinsky said City Hall didn’t pursue restitution for the families because of the pending civil suit. With the criminal charges now resolved, the lawsuit — which was put on hold in July — is expected to resume sometime next month. The civil suit seeks an unspecified amount of money. However, the Vivancos ask for the return of overpaid rent, punitive and exemplary damages and a stop to Liska’s eviction effort. Based on what’s allowed under rent control laws, the Vivancos claim that they have been overcharged rent by as much as $200 each month for the past 17 years. The criminal plea can’t technically be used in the civil case because Liska pleaded no contest, which is not an admission of guilt. However, both Navarro and cocounsel Denise McGranahan, who works for the non-profit Legal Aid Foundation, said Liska’s plea agreement puts their case in a much better position, partly because the threshold for proving guilt in a civil lawsuit is lower than in criminal courts, where defendants must be proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. “It’s too soon to say at this point what it’s all going to come down to,” McGranahan said. “It’s good to know that she has been convicted ... but it’s not like that will make it a clear-cut winner for us.”
Police investigation ongoing SHOOTING, from page 1 wounds were. Santa Monica Police Department Lt. Frank Fabrega said police received several calls from residents who heard shots fired. Police closed off 20th Street between Delaware Avenue and Olympic Boulevard, as well as the alley near 20th Street and Delaware Avenue. SMPD homicide detectives were on scene interviewing witnesses and gathering evidence several hours after the shooting. It was reported that bloodhounds were brought to the area in an effort to pick up a scent of the suspect or suspects involved. At about 8 p.m., police officers were seen hosing off the blood-stained sidewalk. Fabrega said the investigation is ongoing. He was unable at presstime to give further details. “It’s too preliminary at this time,” he said regarding the details of what happened. The area, known as the Pico neighborhood, was the scene of five shootings that all occurred in less than a month from May to June. The SMPD arrested eight suspects who were allegedly
involved in one or more of the shootings. The charges range from attempted murder to parole violations. The neighborhood has been riddled with gang violence and drug dealing for decades. Most of the tension is territorial — between the Graveyard Crips and the Santa Monica 17th Street gang — as well as racial. One gang is black, the other Latino. It is unknown whether Tuesday’s shooting was gang or drug related. Gilanni, who was black, is described by neighbors as a quiet kid who had been “slipping” into the wrong crowd. Anyone with information regarding the shooting should call the SMPD’s robbery/homicide unit at (310) 458-8451 or the watch commander at (310) 458-8426. While Tuesday’s shooting marks the city’s first murder this year, Fabrega said serious crimes against persons or property is down 7.7 percent for the first seven months of 2003 and overall arrests are up 12 percent, according to SMPD statistics. (Daily Press staff writer John Wood contributed to this story.)
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