Kessler v. Ohio Civ. Rights Comm.

2023 Ohio 3376
CourtOhio Court of Appeals
DecidedSeptember 21, 2023
Docket23AP-110
StatusPublished

This text of 2023 Ohio 3376 (Kessler v. Ohio Civ. Rights Comm.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Ohio Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Kessler v. Ohio Civ. Rights Comm., 2023 Ohio 3376 (Ohio Ct. App. 2023).

Opinion

[Cite as Kessler v. Ohio Civ. Rights Comm., 2023-Ohio-3376.]

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF OHIO

TENTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

Diane Kessler, : No. 23AP-110 Plaintiff-Appellant, : (C.P.C. No. 22CV-2352)

v. : (REGULAR CALENDAR)

Ohio Civil Rights Commission et al., :

Defendants-Appellees. :

D E C I S I O N

Rendered on September 21, 2023

On brief: Diane Kessler, pro se. Argued: Diane Kessler.

On brief: Dave Yost, Attorney General, and Sharon Tassie, for Ohio Civil Rights Commission. Argued: Sharon Tassie.

On brief: Kevin W. Popham for Summerlyn Homeowners’ Association et al. Argued: Kevin W. Popham.

APPEAL from the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas MENTEL, J. {¶ 1} Plaintiff-appellant, Diane Kessler, pro se, appeals from a December 26, 2022 decision and judgment entry from the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas affirming the decision of defendant-appellee, Ohio Civil Rights Commission (“Commission”), finding there was no probable cause to issue an administrative complaint against defendants- appellees, Summerlyn Homeowners’ Association (“Summerlyn HOA”), Janet Cahill, and Kevin Glaser for housing discrimination. For the reasons that follow, we affirm. I. FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY {¶ 2} Appellant is a resident of the Summerlyn subdivision, which is governed by the covenants, easements, conditions, and deed restrictions of the Summerlyn HOA. No. 23AP-110 2

Appellant and non-party Tony Eden have resided at the subject premise since June 2013. The Summerlyn HOA came into existence in and around February 2019 and is overseen by elected board members. The Summerlyn HOA board is comprised of Janet Cahill, Kevin Glaser, and David Henderson. Defendant-appellee, Mollie Glaser, is the spouse of Kevin Glaser. {¶ 3} According to appellees, on October 23, 20201, the Summerlyn HOA sent a letter to appellant and Eden of a “first mandated notice to cure” an unapproved exterior land modification2 that was built on their property. The letter read, “the mound that was installed along with the trees is encroaching on the neighbors[’] lot and was not approved prior to installing. The mound and the trees need to be removed and the property returned to the original condition.” (Emphasis deleted.) (Dec. 9, 2022 Record of Proceedings at E3570-Q85.) Appellant was notified that failure to comply by November 2, 2020 would result in an enforcement assessment of $25.00 per violation. On April 2, 2021, the Summerlyn HOA sent a letter to appellant and Eden imposing a $25.00 assessment and notifying them of their right to a hearing on the penalty. A hearing was held on this matter on April 23, 2021. At the conclusion of the hearing, the board took the matter under advisement. By letter dated May 12, 2021, the Summerlyn HOA waived the $25.00 assessment and informed appellant and Eden that their decision was “still pending receipt of information from parties involved.” (Record of Proceedings at E3570-Q89.) {¶ 4} On April 19, 2021, appellant and Eden filed a fair housing inquiry with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”). The charge affidavit alleged the property management company, Towne Properties, Inc., Summerlyn HOA, and Kevin

1 The letter provided in the record appears to be originally dated March 24, 2021. However, this date was

struck and rewritten as October 23, 2020. Appellees address this issue in their brief writing, “[t]he October 23, 2020, (sic) letter was drafted and forwarded to Appellant in October 2020. The property management company printed the letter on March 24, 2021, at which time a computer system incorrectly automatically re- dated the letter.” (Appellees’ Brief at 18, fn. 2.) The November 2, 2020 date referenced within the letter appears to provide support that the amended date is accurate, but the record is unclear on this point. It should be noted that in appellant’s April 5, 2021 letter requesting a hearing, she denied ever receiving the October 23, 2020 letter. 2 The landscaping at issue is a large mound on appellant’s property. Appellant described “the landscape as a

therapeutic mean[s] to cope with and regulate * * * like that of an emotional support animal.” (Dec. 9, 2022 Record of Proceedings E3570-P36.) Appellant contends that the exterior modification has been in place since 2016. No. 23AP-110 3

Glaser engaged in housing discrimination. On June 22, 2021, HUD referred the matter to the Commission for investigation. {¶ 5} In a letter dated December 16, 2021, the Commission concluded that no probable cause existed to issue an administrative complaint regarding appellant’s charge of housing discrimination. The Commission wrote that while Eden was a person with a disability, the request for accommodation was not made until April 23, 2021. The Commission also found that the appellees acted in good faith requesting additional information to determine the need for the accommodation and how it relates to Eden’s disability. The Commission went on to find there was a lack of evidence to establish appellees or their agents, employees subjected appellant and Eden to discrimination or threatened, intimated, interfered, harassed, or coerced them from the full benefit of state or federal fair housing law. Lastly, the Commission found that there was a lack of evidence that appellees denied appellant and Eden the reasonable modification at issue. The Commission wrote that the exterior modification was still intact, and appellant and Eden had full access, rights, use, and enjoyment of the landscaping. Appellant moved the Commission for reconsideration, which was denied on March 10, 2022. {¶ 6} On April 11, 2022, appellant filed an administrative appeal pursuant to R.C. 4112.06 in the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas. Relevant to the instant appeal, on September 28, 2022, Mollie Glaser and Henderson filed a motion to dismiss contending that they were not named in the original housing discrimination charge and could not be named as respondents in the administrative appeal. On December 26, 2022, the common pleas court affirmed the decision of the Commission finding the decision was not unlawful, irrational, arbitrary, or capricious. The common pleas court also granted the motion to dismiss Mollie Glaser and Henderson as they were not named in the charging letter filed with the Commission, and therefore, were not proper parties to the appeal. Appellant filed an appeal with this court on January 25, 2023. {¶ 7} On February 20, 2023, appellees Mollie Glaser, Kevin Glaser, Cahill, Henderson, and Summerlyn HOA filed a motion for partial dismissal of claims asserted by Eden and dismissal of claims against Mollie Glaser and Henderson. On February 27, 2023, the Commission filed a motion to dismiss on the same grounds. On March 9, 2023, this court granted in part, and denied in part, appellees’ motions. Specifically, we granted No. 23AP-110 4

appellees’ motions to dismiss with respect to claims brought by Eden as he did not sign the January 25, 2023 notice of appeal. This court, however, denied the motions to dismiss concerning claims against Mollie Glaser and Henderson finding the trial court’s determination regarding Glaser and Henderson went to the merits of the appeal and could not be summarily addressed prior to completion of briefing. II. ASSIGNMENTS OF ERROR {¶ 8} Appellant assigns the following as trial court error: [I.] The Commission erred to have sound discretion in failing to apply admissible evidence collected over six-months recorded by Andrew Siefert Investigator II for Commission.

[II.] The Commission erred by failing to apply the full scope of the Fair Housing law in determining the case outcome.

[III.] The Respondents erred by misinterpreting the original charge complaint process.

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Bluebook (online)
2023 Ohio 3376, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/kessler-v-ohio-civ-rights-comm-ohioctapp-2023.