MAY JUNG LAW FILES LAWSUIT AGAINST D.C. ON BEHALF OF DISPLACED BLACK WOMEN RESIDENTS OF CRUMBLING TALBERT STREET RESIDENCES

WASHINGTON (March 26, 2024) — May Jung Law, a leading civil rights law firm, filed a complaint today against the District of Columbia in U.S. District Court on behalf of six residents displaced from their homes in Southeast D.C. due to crumbling and unsafe infrastructure.

The complaint states that the District forcibly removed the residents from their homes at River East at Grandview Condominiums at 1262 Talbert St., SE, without just compensation and due process.

All the plaintiffs are Black women, who at the time of purchase, were first-time homebuyers with low-to-moderate income and were eligible to purchase a home constructed using Housing Production Trust Funds (HPTF). The residents purchased their homes between 2017 and 2018.

Within weeks of moving into their brand-new homes, the plaintiffs began to experience multiple issues, including backed-up sewage and broken plumbing, significant separation of ceilings and floors, mold and mildew, and doors and windows that would not close.

By 2021, the residents received a letter in which they were asked to evacuate the building and were told that the intent was to repair the damage. Until today, the residents have not been able to return to their homes, but their obligations to the District and private mortgage lenders continue.

The District determined their homes to be unsafe and never complied with its own laws in providing a remedy. In 2021, the District issued Correction Orders for more than 46 code violations at the property, and to date, no repairs related to those Orders have been completed by the District. Moreover, the District has made no efforts to secure the structural integrity of the property to date, even after being advised of the danger to District residents living on Morris Road SE.

The District deemed it unlawful for the residents to return to their homes without prior written permission from the Department of Buildings. The District continues to retaliate against the residents by prohibiting their legal counsel from attending meetings with the District. 

“No one should live in the conditions our clients had to live with, but adding salt to the wound, no one should have to deal with the consequences that they are having to face because of the District’s mistakes,” said Je Yon Jung, partner at May Jung Law. “They deserve proper compensation for the loss of their home. The District’s disregard for due process and the rights guaranteed under the constitution is inexcusable.”

For more information about May Jung Law Firm, go to www.mayjung.com.