Judge Claudia Baio in virtual court this week.
Without the help of an attorney, a tenant successfully convinced a judge that she was eligible for protection under a nationwide eviction moratorium.
That happened Thursday in New Haven’s state housing court.
The tenant in the case, Nicole McDowell, lives in a rooming house on Newhall Street. She was sued in July by landlord Jamie Atkinson, represented by attorney Peter Catania, for nonpayment of her $175 weekly rent.
In January, the two parties entered into an agreement in which McDowell would pay $400 for use and occupancy and, in exchange, would be allowed to stay in the premises until Feb. 15, 2021
On Feb. 2, however, McDowell filed a CDC declaration claiming eligibility for the federal Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) eviction moratorium. The hearing Thursday was to determine if McDowell’s eviction should be stopped for the period of the moratorium.
Because the tenant did not have a lawyer who could present her eligibility to Judge Claudia Baio, Baio instead read out each section of the moratorium and had McDowell explain how she qualified.
McDowell first said that she had “used best efforts to obtain all available governmental assistance for rent or housing” by applying to multiple housing and rental assistance statewide and city-wide programs. She said she is currently on the waiting list for the state Rental Assistance Program, the Housing Choice Voucher Program, and federal Section 8 rental subsidy in Hamden.
In 2020, she had zero income, she said, after the two bars she worked at shut down due to the pandemic.
Though McDowell filed for unemployment multiple times throughout the past year, she only recently heard back that she could begin claiming benefits, which she hopes will be retroactive, she said.
McDowell stated that should she get evicted, she would have no choice but to enter a congregate setting or become homeless, which would pose public health risks due to the current pandemic.
“I hate to be that dramatic, but that’s what it is,” she said. “I find a place, or I don’t have a place.”
McDowell attempted to make one partial payment of rent for $100; the landlord rejected it. Catania said that this rejection was done on his advisement, due to the fact that McDowell broke the stipulation by offering $100 instead of the $400 agreed-upon amount for use and occupancy.
Catania added that the CDC declaration had “nebulous claims.” He asked when McDowell began filing the applications for rental assistance. He also expressed skepticism about her efforts to find employment. “There are jobs out there,” he said. “There have been jobs out there for people willing to work.” He asked why she hasn’t used her federal stimulus money to make rental payments.
“This is a huge financial burden on my client,” he said, adding that McDowell was also smoking in the premises and has “a complete lack of respect in the house.”
“Obviously he’s repeating whatever he was told, but that was a mouth full of lies,” McDowell retorted, claiming that she paid what she was required to pay “immediately.”
“I don’t know where the smoking claims come from,” she added. “Literally everyone in the house smokes.”
Baio chose not to address the additional smoking and other nuisance claims, instead focusing solely on the CDC moratorium.
“While I understand the concerns that have been addressed, the defendant has testified under oath with regard to each of the claims, and the court does believe that the CDC declaration applies,” Judge Baio ruled.
She ordered the two parties to enter mediation to address any potential missed payments.
