Byrd v. Brandeburg

932 F. Supp. 198, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9787, 1996 WL 376653
District Court, N.D. Ohio·Decided May 30, 1996·No. No. 1:95-CV-1092·Published·Cited by 2 cases

Opinion

MEMORANDUM & ORDER

O’MALLEY, District Judge.

This Court previously ruled that defendant Brad Brandeburg is hable to the plaintiffs for violations of the Fair Housing Act and 42 U.S.C. § 1982. In addition, this Court also found that Brad Brandeburg’s parents, defendants Gerald and Cheryl Brandeburg, are hable to the plaintiffs under O.R.C. § 3109.09, one of Ohio’s parental liability statutes. (See Memorandum and Order of March 18, 1996, docket # 17). These findings were made after the plaintiffs filed a motion for summary judgment on the liability issues, which the defendants did not oppose. By agreement of the parties, a bench trial on damages was held on April 30, 1996. At trial, the plaintiffs presented the testimony of plaintiff Eddie Byrd and of Mr. Byrd’s daughter, Glynis Deadwyler. Defendants presented the testimony of Cheryl Brandeburg.

As set forth moré fully in this Court’s March 18, 1996 Memorandum and Order, on October 27, 1994, a Molotov cocktail was thrown onto the porch of the plaintiffs’ home. The facts set forth in the plaintiffs’ summary [200]*200judgment motion, which facts stood undisputed by the defendants, demonstrated that there was tremendous racial animus between the Byrds and the Brandeburgs and that Brad Brandeburg participated in throwing the Molotov cocktail at the Byrd’s home. The device landed on the porch of the Byrd home and caused damage to that porch. The Byrds, Mrs. Deadwyler and Mrs. Deadwyler’s children were all at home at the time the porch ignited.

At trial, Mr. Byrd testified that the device caused physical damage to the porch, which he repaired himself. The physical damage required replacement of some of the planks of wood on the porch and repainting of the porch. Mr. Byrd testified that he had invoices for the cost of the materials used in these repairs, but these invoices were never presented in court. In addition, Mr. Byrd testified that the total cost of repairing the porch, including the cost of his own labor, was one thousand dollars.

Mr. Byrd also testified that both he and his wife suffered emotional distress from the incident. Mr. Byrd stated at trial that the incident changed his whole outlook regarding his home and his neighborhood. He testified that, since the incident, he feels as though he always must be “on guard”. He also testified that, immediately after the incident, his blood pressure increased and he was not able to sleep well due to the need to stand guard over his family and his home.

Mrs. Byrd did not appear at trial. Counsel for the Byrds represented that she was under her doctor’s care for respiratory problems. Mr. Byrd related, however, that after the incident, Mrs. Byrd became “highly emotionally upset” and that her “whole life pattern was altered” by this incident. He testified that she was hospitalized one week after the incident, due to hypertension. He testified that Mrs. Byrd was now afraid to stay in the house alone.

The Byrd’s daughter, Mrs. Glynis Deadwyler, testified that the effect of the incident upon her parents was “devastating” and that it changed everything in their household. She testified that, as a result of the incident, her mother could not stay at home alone and that someone always had to “stand guard” and investigate any noise. She testified that her family no longer holds holiday celebrations at her parent’s home and that the incident became the focus of her mother’s life. She also testified that, although her father was typically a nonviolent person, he purchased and kept a gun in the home for protection after the incident.

Damages against Brad Brandeburg under the Fair Housing Act and § 1982

The Fair Housing Act provides that, if the court finds that a discriminatory housing practice has occurred, the court may award a plaintiff “actual and punitive damages”. 42 U.S.C. § 3612(c)(1). Courts have held, under the Fair Housing Act, that plaintiffs may recover, as compensatory damages, out-of-pocket expenses for property damage and damages for emotional distress. See Baumgardner v. Secretary of H.U.D., 960 F.2d 572, 580-581 (6th Cir.1992); Stewart v. Furton, 774 F.2d 706, 710 (6th Cir.1985) (dicta). The Sixth Circuit has used a “totality of the circumstances” standard in evaluating a plaintiffs right to such damages in housing discrimination cases. Baumgardner, 960 F.2d at 581.

The proof necessary to demonstrate the extent of out-of-pocket expenses to repair property damage is fairly obvious. For example, invoices for the repairs to damaged property provide direct proof of the extent of these expenses, as does testimony regarding the nature and extent of work done to effectuate any such repairs. Such direct proof is rarely available, however, for compensatory damages related to emotional distress. Plaintiffs argue in their Trial Brief that such damages may be “inferred from the circumstances of the case”. Trial Brief at p. 8. The availability of so-called “presumed damages” in civil rights cases, however, has been limited to those cases in which there is no other evidence of compensatory damages. Baumgardner, 960 F.2d at 581-83. “Presumed damages are a substitute for ordinary compensatory damages, not a supplement for an award that fully compensates the alleged injury” Id. at 586 (Jones concurring) quoting Memphis Community School DistHct v. [201]*201Stachura, All U.S. 299, 310, 106 S.Ct. 2537, 2545, 91 L.Ed.2d 249 (1986). Thus, presumed damages are not awarded in cases where there is other proof of compensatory damages.

With respect to the kind of proof that is sufficient to demonstrate compensatory damages for emotional distress, some guidelines have emerged. For example, even after Stachura, some circuits have held that a court may not presume emotional distress damages from the fact of housing discrimination. U.S. v. Balistrieri, 981 F.2d 916, 931 (7th Cir.1992), cert. den. 510 U.S. 812, 114 S.Ct. 58, 126 L.Ed.2d 28 (1993). It is clear, however, that the plaintiff who seeks damages for emotional distress caused by the violation of the Fair Housing Act need not submit medical or other similar empirical evidence of that emotional distress, nor must those damages be amenable to precise calculation. Morgan v. Secretary of HUD, 985 F.2d 1451, 1459 (10th Cir.1993); Balistrieri, 981 F.2d at 931-32; see Baumgardner, 960 F.2d at 581 (Sixth Circuit affirms award of emotional distress damages where the only evidence of those damages was the plaintiffs own testimony about how the incident made him feel).

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Byrd v. Brandeburg, 932 F. Supp. 198, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9787, 1996 WL 376653 (N.D. Ohio 1996).

932 F. Supp. 198 (Byrd v. Brandeburg) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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