In an agreement unveiled by federal prosecutors, a woman facing eviction from her Manhattan apartment over her three emotional support parrots will receive $165,000 in damages and $585,000 for her apartment. The resolution of the dispute between Meril Lesser and the board of the Rutherford, a 175-unit cooperative apartment building in Gramercy Park, marks a significant legal precedent.
Lesser, who purchased her apartment at the Rutherford in 1999, lived with her parrots Layla, Ginger, and Curtis. The conflict began in 2015 when neighbor Charlotte Kullen complained about the noise, describing it as a disturbance that plagued her with nightmares. However, despite 15 inspections by the New York City Department of Environmental Protection, no evidence of excessive noise was found. “No birds, no screeching — no noise,” an inspector noted in a report dated February 7, 2016.
Lesser provided letters from her psychiatrist verifying her need for the parrots for her mental well-being, but the Rutherford board still initiated eviction proceedings in May 2016. Consequently, Lesser moved out and sublet her apartment while filing a federal fair housing complaint with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in 2018. HUD determined there was probable cause to believe that Lesser’s fair housing rights had been violated.
Rather than settling, the Rutherford chose to proceed to federal court, which required the Department of Justice to file a suit. According to Manhattan U.S. Attorney Damian Williams, the consent decree approved by a federal judge on August 16 constitutes the largest recovery the federal government has achieved for a person with disabilities being denied their right to an assistance animal. “This outcome should prompt all housing providers to consider carefully whether their policies and procedures comply with federal law,” Williams emphasized.
Peter Livingston, an attorney representing the Rutherford co-op board, expressed satisfaction with resolving the case. As part of the agreement, the Rutherford will pay Lesser $165,000 and purchase her co-op shares for $565,000. Additionally, the co-op must adopt a reasonable accommodation policy for assistance animals and allow the federal government to monitor compliance. The eviction proceedings against Lesser in housing court will also be dismissed.
Lesser did not respond to a text message sent to a phone number listed for her.
