On September 30, 2020, WRP and ACLU-MO filed a complaint for injunctive and declaratory relief in the Western District of Missouri on behalf of KC Tenants, a local grassroots organization that seeks to advance fair housing access to renters. The lawsuit challenges the Jackson County Circuit Court’s administrative order that purports to implement the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) nationwide eviction moratorium, but instead permits eviction cases to move forward in violation of it, putting hundreds of Missouri tenants at risk for eviction in violation of federal protections.

On April 18, 2019, WRP filed an amended complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, challenging a criminal activity nuisance ordinance in Bedford, Ohio, on behalf of Beverly Somai and the Fair Housing Center for Rights & Research. Bedford’s nuisance ordinance penalizes property owners when two or more perceived violations of any law, excluding traffic violations, occur near the home or involve a resident of the property within a one-year period. The city enforces the ordinance based on calls for police assistance — even if the resident is the victim of the crime or needs aid, such as Ms. Somai and her son. Bedford’s ordinance and its enforcement disproportionately impacts communities of color, low-income households, people with disabilities, and domestic violence survivors—the vast majority of whom are women.