Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara has come to the rescue of Stephanie Aaron, an unwell woman who was in danger of being evicted from her home. Manhattan federal Judge Edgardo Ramos has granted Bharara’s request for a temporary restraining order against Aaron’s landlord.
Stephanie Aaron, 53, suffers from depression and anxiety and relies on her pet dog Rosie to get her through the day. But her building does not allow dogs and told her to get rid of it in spite of having a psychiatrist’s letter stating that Aaron needed the pet due to her mental handicap and should be allowed to keep it.
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But now the East River Housing Corp. which manages her building on the Lower East Side of Manhattan has been enjoined from evicting her for at least the foreseeable future. The lawsuit over the matter could take years to be resolved.
Aaron lives at a 1, 672-unit complex at 573 Grand St.
In his petition Bharara wrote, “Aaron will . . . suffer irreparable harm should she be evicted from her apartment or forced to separate from her assistance animal. The government respectfully requests that the court preliminary enjoin East River from taking any steps to evict Aaron, or to remove her assistance animal from her apartment.”
In a press release from last December, Bhahara alleged East River Housing discriminated against a tenant “by failing to permit a reasonable accommodation of the tenant’s psychiatric disability.”
“The Fair Housing Act plainly allows tenants with disabilities to keep assistance animals, ” he said.
