Filed Date: Sept. 6, 2001
Closed Date: Nov. 19, 2009
Clearinghouse coding complete
On September 6, 2001 displaced public housing residents represented by Florida Legal Services Inc., the Florida Justice Institute, and the National Housing Law Project filed a class action lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida alleging that a revitalization plan for their complexes in Liberty City, Miami, Florida was racially discriminatory. The plaintiffs' claimed violations of the Fair Housing Act (42 U. S. C. §§ 3601 et seq.), Title VI of Civil Rights Acts of 1964 (42 U.S.C. §2000d), Fifth and Fourteenth Amendment Equal Protection, the Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act (QHWRA) ( 42 U.S. C. §1437v) and the Housing and Community Development Act (42 U.S.C. § 5304). The complaint was directed at two sets of defendants - Miami-Dade County / the Miami-Dade County Housing Agency (MDHA) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The plaintiffs sought injunctive and declaratory relief.
The thrust of plaintiffs' complaint was that the defendants' configuration of the Liberty City HOPE VI project was consciously designed to discourage African-Americans from living in the redeveloped Scott Homes neighborhood, and that the county's revitalization plan, as approved by HUD, would result in the destruction of affordable housing and the forced displacement of residents.
On July 3, 2002, the District Court (Judge Shelby Highsmith) certified a class consisting of all current African-American residents in the Scott-Holmes Housing Projects but denied (for lack of standing) certification of a class consisting of persons on the waiting list and applicants who would eventually be placed on the MDHA waiting list.
On November 11, 2009, United States District Court (Judge Daniel T. K. Hurley) granted defendants' motion for summary judgment and denied plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment. On November 19, 2009, the court ordered final summary judgment against the plaintiffs, closing the case and terminating any pending motions as moot.
Summary Authors
David Miller (3/19/2010)
For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/5584703/parties/reese-v-miami-dade-county/
Berg, Randall Challen Jr. (Florida)
Elsesser, Charles F Jr. (Florida)
Espinosa, Todd Isaac (California)
Bonn, Laura W. (Florida)
Ginsburg, Robert A (Florida)
Highsmith, Shelby (Florida)
Hopkins, James M. (Florida)
Hurley, Daniel T. K. (Florida)
See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/5584703/reese-v-miami-dade-county/
Last updated March 17, 2024, 3:09 a.m.
State / Territory: Florida
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: Sept. 6, 2001
Closing Date: Nov. 19, 2009
Case Ongoing: No
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
An unincorporated institution and a class consisting of residents of two public housing complexes in Miami-Dade County, whose demographics were almost entirely African-American.
Plaintiff Type(s):
Attorney Organizations:
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: Yes
Class Action Outcome: Granted
Defendants
Miami-Dade County (Miami, Dade), County
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Fair Housing Act/Fair Housing Amendments Act (FHAA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 3601 et seq.
Declaratory Judgment Act, 28 U.S.C. § 2201
Title VI, Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000d et seq.
Constitutional Clause(s):
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Defendant
Nature of Relief:
Source of Relief:
Issues
General: