§ 34-37-5. Prevention of unlawful housing practices.
(a) The commission is empowered and directed to prevent any person from violating any
of the provisions of this chapter, provided that before instituting a formal proceeding,
it shall attempt by informal methods of conference, persuasion, and conciliation to
induce compliance with this chapter.
(b) Upon the commission's own initiative or whenever an aggrieved individual or an organization
chartered for the purpose of or engaged in combating discrimination or racism or of
safeguarding civil liberties, that organization acting on behalf of one or more individuals
being hereinafter referred to as the complainant, makes a charge, in writing, under
oath, to the commission that any person, agency, bureau, corporation, or association,
hereinafter referred to as the respondent, has violated or is violating, to the best
of complainant's knowledge and belief, any of the provisions of this chapter, and
that the alleged discriminatory housing practice has occurred or terminated within
one year of the date of filing, the commission may initiate a preliminary investigation
and if it shall determine after the investigation that it is probable that unlawful
housing practices have been or are being engaged in, it shall endeavor to eliminate
the unlawful housing practices by informal methods of conference, conciliation, and
persuasion. Nothing said or done during these endeavors may be used as evidence in
any subsequent proceeding. If after the investigation and conference, the commission
is satisfied that any unlawful housing practice of the respondent will be eliminated,
it may, with the consent of the complainant, treat the charge as conciliated, and
entry of that disposition shall be made on the records of the commission. If the commission
fails to effect the elimination of the unlawful housing practices and to obtain voluntary
compliance with this chapter, or, if the circumstances warrant, in advance of any
preliminary investigation or endeavors, the commission shall have the power to issue
and cause to be served upon any person or respondent a complaint stating the charges
in that respect and containing a notice of hearing before the commission, a member
thereof, or a hearing examiner at a place therein fixed to be held not less than ten
(10) days after the service of the complaint.
(c) The commission, member thereof, or hearing examiner conducting the hearing shall have
the power reasonably and fairly to amend any written complaint at any time prior to
the issuance of an order based thereon. The respondent shall have like power to amend
its answer to the original or amended complaint at any time prior to the issuance
of the order. The commissioner assigned to the preliminary hearing of any charge shall
take no part in the final hearing except as a witness upon competent matters and will
have no part in the determination or decision of the case after hearing.
(d) The respondent shall have the right to file an answer to the complaint and shall appear
at the hearing in person or otherwise with or without counsel to present evidence
and to examine and cross-examine witnesses.
(e) In any proceeding, the commission, its member, or its agent shall not be bound by
the rules of evidence prevailing in the courts.
(f) The commission shall in ascertaining the practices followed by the respondent take
into account all evidence, statistical or otherwise, that may tend to prove the existence
of a predetermined pattern of discrimination in housing.
(g) The testimony taken at the hearing shall be under oath and shall be reduced to writing
and filed with the commission. Thereafter, in its discretion, the commission upon
notice may take further testimony or hear argument.
(h)(1) If upon all the testimony taken the commission shall determine that the respondent
has engaged in or is engaging in unlawful housing practices, the commission shall
state its findings of fact and shall issue and cause to be served on the respondent
an order requiring the respondent to cease and desist from the unlawful housing practices,
and to take further affirmative or other action as will effectuate the purposes of
this chapter.
(2) The commission may also order the respondent to pay the complainant damages sustained
thereby; costs, including reasonable attorney's fees incurred at any time in connection
with the commission of the unlawful act, and civil penalties, any amounts awarded
to be deposited in the state treasury. The civil penalty shall be (i) An amount not
exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000) if the respondent has not been adjudged to
have committed any prior discriminatory housing practice; (ii) In an amount not exceeding
twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) if the respondent has been adjudged to have
committed one other discriminatory housing practice during the five-year (5) period
ending on the date of filing this charge; and (iii) In an amount not exceeding fifty
thousand dollars ($50,000) if the respondent has been adjudged to have committed two
(2) or more discriminatory housing practices during the seven-year (7) period ending
on the date of the filing of this charge; except that if the acts constituting the
discriminatory housing practice that is the object of the charge are committed by
the same natural person who has been previously adjudged to have committed acts constituting
a discriminatory housing practice, then the civil penalties set forth in (ii) and
(iii) may be imposed without regard to the period of time within which any subsequent
discriminatory housing practice occurred. When determining the amount of civil penalties,
the commission shall consider as a mitigating factor whether the respondent has acted
in good faith and whether the respondent has actively engaged in regular antidiscrimination
educational programs. Provided that no order shall affect any contract, sale, encumbrance,
or lease consummated before the issuance of the order and involving a bona fide purchaser,
encumbrancer, or tenant without actual notice of the charge filed under this title.
(i) If the commission shall find that no probable cause exists for crediting the charges,
or, if upon all the evidence, it shall find that a respondent has not engaged in unfair
housing practices, the commission shall state its findings of fact and shall issue
and cause to be served on the complainant an order dismissing the complaint as to
the respondent. A copy of the order shall be delivered in all cases to the attorney
general and such other public officers as the commission deems proper.
(j) Until a transcript of the record in a case shall be filed in a court as provided in
subsection (m), the commission may at any time, upon reasonable notice, and in such
manner as it shall deem proper, modify or set aside, in whole or in part, any of its
findings or orders.
(k) Until such time as a hearing is convened pursuant to this section, no publicity shall
be given to any proceedings before the commission, either by the commission or any
employee thereof, the complainant, or the respondent, except that in the event of
a conciliation agreement the agreement shall be made public unless the complainant
and respondent otherwise agree and the commission determines that disclosure is not
required to further the purposes of this chapter. After the complaint issues and before
an order issues, the commission shall not initiate any public notice of any charge
or complaint before the commission, however, the commission may respond to inquiries
about the status of a complaint.
(l) A complainant may seek a right to sue in state court if not less than one hundred
and twenty (120) days and not more than two (2) years have elapsed from the date of
filing of a charge, if the commission has been unable to secure a settlement agreement
or conciliation agreement and if the commission has not commenced hearing on a complaint.
The commission shall grant the right to sue within thirty (30) days after receipt
of the request. This shall terminate all proceedings before the commission and shall
give to the complainant the right to commence suit in the superior court within any
county as provided in § 28-5-28 within ninety (90) days after the granting of the request. Any party may claim a
trial by jury. The superior court may make orders consistent with subsection (h) and
may also award punitive damages and such other damages as the court deems just and
proper.
(m)(1) The commission is further empowered to file a complaint in the superior court in any
county in which the unlawful housing practice allegedly occurs, or has occurred, or
in which a defendant resides or maintains a business office, or in Providence County,
seeking injunctive relief, including a temporary restraining order, against the defendant.
(2) No preliminary injunction shall be effective for more than thirty (30) days; provided
that, if the defendant has sought judicial review of an order of the commission issued
pursuant to this section, or if the commission has sought a decree of the court for
the enforcement of the order, the preliminary injunction shall remain in full force
and effect until such time as the judicial review or the commission's petition for
the decree of enforcement is finally heard and determined.
(3) In any proceeding under this subsection, the commission may, if the prayer of the
original or amended complaint so requests, proceed at the proper time to obtain the
relief provided in § 34-37-6.
(4) The application by the commission for injunctive relief shall not prevent the commission
from continuing to prosecute the proceeding before it out of which the application
arises.
(5) Whenever a complaint shall be filed under the provisions of this subsection, the state
shall be liable, in an action brought against it, for the payment of such costs and
damages as may have been incurred or suffered by the defendant should final judgment
be entered upon the complaint in favor of the defendant, or should the commission,
having been denied temporary relief after the entry of a restraining order, fail to
prosecute the matter further, or should the commission, having been granted temporary
relief, fail to prosecute the matter further, unless, in the latter two (2) instances,
failure to prosecute is caused by the making of an agreed settlement of any kind with
the defendant, including a conciliation agreement.
(6) All proceedings taken pursuant to the provisions of this section shall take precedence
over all other civil matters then pending before the court.
(n) The complainant or the respondent may elect, within twenty (20) days after receipt
of a finding of probable cause, to terminate by written notice to the commission all
proceedings before the commission and have the case heard in the superior court. In
the event of an election to terminate the proceedings, the commission shall issue
a right to sue notice to the complainant with a copy of the notice sent to all parties.
(1) The complainant shall have the right to commence suit in the superior court within
any county as provided in § 28-5-28 within ninety (90) days of the date of the right to sue notice. Either party may
claim a trial by jury in the superior court.
(2) Notwithstanding the termination of proceedings before the commission upon the granting
of the right to sue notice, the parties may agree to have the commission seek to conciliate
or mediate settlement of the case within the ninety-day (90) period in which the complainant
has the right to commence suit in superior court.
(o) If an election is made under subsection (n):
(1) The complainant, the commission, or the attorney general may commence a civil action
on behalf of the aggrieved person in the superior court within any county as provided
in § 28-5-28 within ninety (90) days of the date of the right to sue notice under subsection (n);
(2) Any party may claim a trial by jury. Any aggrieved person with respect to the issues
to be determined in a civil action under this subsection may intervene as of right
in that civil action;
(3) The superior court may make orders consistent with subsection (h) and may also award
punitive damages and such damages as the court deems just and proper; provided, that
the court shall not enter a consent order, dismissal stipulation, or judgment settling
claims of discrimination in an action or proceeding under this chapter, unless the
parties and their counsel attest that a waiver of all or substantially all attorneys'
fees was not compelled as a condition of the settlement.