Dear Mr Lee:
This is in response to the letters
and phone calls you have made to this office concerning your
dispute with the City of Cleveland Municipal Court system. In
addition, you have provided this office with written materials
regarding this matter.
Based on our telephone conversations and the materials you sent us,
it appears that your dispute concerns, among other things, the
conduct of the City of Cleveland Municipal Court and alleged
conflict-of-interest issues concerning some of the Court's
employees. The Housing and Civil Enforcement Section of the Civil
Rights Division enforces the Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. 3601, et
seq., which prohibits, among other things, discrimination in the
sale or rental of a dwelling, or in the terms, conditions, or
privileges of the sate or rental of a dwelling. The issues you have
raised do not appear to implicate the Fair Housing Act.
Even if this matter did fall
within the purview of the Fair Housing Act, the Department of
Justice can take enforcement action only when there is a pattern or
practice of discrimination or a denial of rights to a group of
persons. 42 U S.C. 3601, et seq. We do not investigate all the
complaints concerning allegations of individual incidents of
discrimination that we receive. We have carefully reviewed the
information that you have provided and determined that no further
action is warranted by the Department of Justice concerning this
matter.
During our most recent telephone
conversation on July 10, 2002, I informed you that the Ohio
Civil Rights Commission investigates individual complaints of
discrimination in housing. The phone number and address of the
Civil Rights Commission office closest to Cleveland is:
U.S. Department of Justice
- Civil Rights Division
Ohio Civil Rights Commission
161 S. High St., Suite 205
Akron, Ohio 44308
(330) 643-3120
June 30th,
1994
Dear Ms. Kitchall:
RE: Cleveland Restoration Society
v. Mary Rayford. et al. Cleveland Municipal Court Case No. 94 CVH
2435 - Mary V. Rayford and Sanford Lee
Morris Levin Attorneys At
Law Daniel Levin
Marjorie H. Kitchell, Esq.
Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue
901 Lakeside Avenue
Cleveland, Ohio 44114
Thank you for your letter of June
28, 1994 We had researched the authority under which the
Restoration Society is operating. The purported authority is
Revised Code section 3767.41. In section (A)(i) it states that "a
building" does not include any building or structure occupied by
its owner that contains three or fewer residential suites. Since
the 9805 South Boulevard property is a one-family dwelling occupied
by its owner, it is, therefore, not included within the purview or
authority of the Revised Code, and therefore, the Court is without
jurisdiction and the order of the Court should be vacated.
Even if this were not true, the
constitutionality of this statute is most questionable. It provides
for a taking of property without a provision for
compensation.
My clients have spent about
$20,000 on the property, and according to the statute, it will be
foreclosed and probably the only one to bid on the property will be
the holders of the lien.
The statute further purports to
have a foreclose action in the Cleveland Municipal Court which has
no foreclosure jurisdiction.
The only negotiation that I have
found any record is a suggestion" to my clients that' they "take a
"charitable "deduction for " the donation of their property.
Mary Rayford is a senior citizen working very hard and her beauty
shop operation does not need any charitable contribution deduction.
Her son Sanford Lee is a Vietnam Veteran whose sole work has been
the repair of this house.
~Cordially, Morris Levin
Co., L.P.A.
We thank you for your inquiry and
hope this information has been helpful to you. Enclosed please find
your materials regarding this matter. If you have any questions,
feel free to call me at 202-514-4701.
Sincerely,
~Joan A. Magagna Chief
~Elise S. Shore, Attorney
SOUTH BOULEVARD HISTORICAL
SOCIETY
December 21, 2005
Re: Cleveland Restoration
Society v. Mary Rayford, et al.
Cleveland Municipal Court Case
No. 94 CVH 2435
Dear Ms. Winfrey:
This letter is a request for your
advocacy in the above mentioned case, which is an illustration of
the victimization of senior citizen property owners in Glenville by
unscrupulous organizations such as the Cleveland Restoration
Society. Many seniors have lost their homes due to the
machinations of this organization—we feel that these wrongs will be
righted if we gain the advocacy of a nationally known person such
as yourself. Please help us.
We may be reached at the above
listed address and/or phone number. Thank you in advance for
any assistance you may render us in this endeavor.
Sincerely yours,
~Sanford R. Lee, President
South Boulevard Historical Society
