Indiana Civil Rights Commission v. Holman

380 N.E.2d 1281, 177 Ind. App. 648, 1978 Ind. App. LEXIS 1044
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedOctober 3, 1978
Docket1-378A66
StatusPublished
Cited by22 cases

This text of 380 N.E.2d 1281 (Indiana Civil Rights Commission v. Holman) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Indiana Civil Rights Commission v. Holman, 380 N.E.2d 1281, 177 Ind. App. 648, 1978 Ind. App. LEXIS 1044 (Ind. Ct. App. 1978).

Opinion

STATEMENT OF THE CASE

Lowdermilk, J.

Defendants-appellants Indiana Civil Rights Commission, Johnny E. Jackson, and Marylyn Jackson appeal from the trial court’s judgment wherein the trial court, while reviewing an administrative determination of the Indiana Civil Rights Commission, reversed the Commission’s decision and held that there was no substantial and probative evidence in the record which would support that decision of the Commission.

FACTS

The Jacksons are spouses of a mixed marriage; Marylyn is Caucasian and Johnny is Negro. In January or February, 1972 Marylyn talked to Margaret Holman, the wife of defendant-appellant Helvie Holman, about renting a house on a lake near Terre Haute from the Holmans. Margaret agreed to rent the lakeside apartment to the Jacksons. However, when Marylyn told Margaret that Johnny was a black man, Margaret told Marylyn that she and Helvie did not approve of mixed marriages, but agreed that she and Helvie would talk to Johnny to see what kind of a person he was. After the Jacksons and the Holmans met together Margaret told Marylyn that Johnny seemed very nice and that the Holmans would rent the apartment to the Jacksons for six months and that a determination would be made at the end of that six months, as to whether the lease would be renewed. The Jacksons agreed to rent the apartment.

While the Jacksons lived at the apartment the Holmans prohibited Johnny from using the lake, but they allowed other renters to use the lake. The Holmans also prohibited Johnny from bringing any of his black friends to the apartment.

*650 Thirty days before the 6 month lease would have terminated Margaret told the Jacksons that their lease would not be renewed because the Jacksons had damaged the apartment and permitted the premises to deteriorate and because “they were that kind of people.” The Jacksons understood Margaret’s reference to “that kind of people” to be a racial slur.

The Jacksons moved out, but when they asked for the return of their $150 security deposit, the Holmans refused to give it to them. The Holmans alleged that the Jacksons had damaged the apartment; the Jacksons maintained that they left the apartment in better condition than they received it.

The Jacksons filed a complaint with the Indiana Civil Rights Commission. The Commission held a hearing, found that Holman had engaged in one or more racially discriminatory practices, ordered Holman to return the Jacksons’ $150 security deposit, and ordered Holman to pay the Jacksons $1,000 as compensation for racial insult.

Holman appealed to the trial court, and the trial court held that there was no probative and substantial evidence which would support the findings and decision of the Commission. Therefore, the trial court reversed the decision of the Commission.

ISSUES

The issues which have been presented to this court for review are as follows:

1. Whether the trial court erred in overruling the Commission’s motion to dismiss Holman’s petition for judicial review.

2. Whether the decision of the trial court was contrary to law.

3. Whether the Commission exceeded its statutory authority in awarding the Jacksons $1,000 in damages for racial insult.

DISCUSSION AND DECISION

Issue One

The Commission contends that the trial court erred in overruling the Commission’s motion to dismiss Holman’s petition for judicial review for the reason that Holman did not file a transcript of the administrative *651 proceedings in the trial court within the time allotted by IC 1971, 4-22-1-14 (Burns Code Ed.).

IC 4-22-1-14, supra, provides that a verified petition for review must be filed within 15 days after receipt of notice that a determination has been made by the agency; once that petition is filed, IC 4-22-1-14, supra, requires that the following procedure be executed:

“Any party or person so filing such verified petition for review with such court shall within fifteen [15] days thereafter secure from such agency a certified copy of the transcript of said proceedings before the agency including the order or administrative adjudication sought to be reviewed and file the same with the clerk of such court in which such action for review is pending. An extension of time in which to file such transcript shall be granted by said court in which such action for review is pending for good cause shown. Inability to obtain such transcript within time shall be good cause. Failure to file such transcript within said period of fifteen [15] days, or to secure an extension of time therefor, shall be cause for the dismissal of such petition for review by the court or on petition of any party of record to the original proceeding. . . .”

In the case at bar Holman filed his verified petition for review within 15 days of receipt of notice of the agency’s determination. Holman also timely filed a motion for extension of time in which to file the transcript of the administrative proceedings; the trial court granted Holman’s motion for extension of time. The Commission waited 16 months before it provided Holman with the transcript of the administrative proceedings. Two and one-half months thereafter Holman filed the transcript with the trial court.

It is the Commission’s argument that Holman should have filed the transcript within 15 days after receiving it from the Commission. We do not agree. There is no statutory support for the Commission’s argument. IC 4-22-1-14, supra, states that a party seeking judicial review of an administrative decision must obtain and file the transcript of proceedings within 15 days of filing its verified petition for review or seek an extension of time in which to file the transcript.

In the case at bar Holman sought and obtained an extension of time in which to file the transcript of proceedings. There is nothing in the *652 statute which would have imposed a duty upon Holman to file the transcript within a certain period of time after receiving it from the Commission. The court in the case at bar had placed no time limit on the filing of the transcript. Therefore, we hold that Holman complied with the provisions of IC 4-22-1-14, swpra, and that the trial court did not err in overruling the Commission’s motion to dismiss Holman’s petition for review.

Issue Two

The Commission contends that the judgment of the trial court is contrary to law in that the trial court erroneously ignored certain probative and substantial evidence in reaching its decision that the Commission’s determination was not supported by probative and substantial evidence. We agree.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
380 N.E.2d 1281, 177 Ind. App. 648, 1978 Ind. App. LEXIS 1044, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/indiana-civil-rights-commission-v-holman-indctapp-1978.