Safe at Home

Discrimination is illegal for those who make renting their business, but people with criminal records may find the law a little less than neighborly.

Landlords can and do refuse to rent to people with criminal histories and prior drug convictions and to sex offenders.

And they are well within the law.

The Fair Housing Act was adopted in 1968 to ban housing discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin - but not on a person's past criminal record.

The Act says that "Nothing ... requires that a dwelling be made available to an individual whose tenancy would constitute a direct threat to the health or safety of other individuals or whose tenancy would result in substantial physical damage to the property of others."

Chris Parsons, past president of the Bay Area Landlord and Business Owners Association, has denied prospective renters housing because of criminal records.

The association does credit and background checks on all applicants, a standard practice among landlords.

One had a conviction of assault with a deadly weapon, Parsons found. When Parsons asked the woman about it, she told Parsons that she lost her temper, happened to have a gun in her purse and used it.

"And I thought, well what if she just happens to lose her temper with one of the other tenants?" Parsons said.

Parsons owns six rental units in Bay City and about 30 in Saginaw. She said the issue of using criminal history to deny a person tenancy is a question that comes up frequently among landlords, who want to prevent discrimination while protecting other renters and their own properties.

They want to protect themselves against lawsuits, too.

But many find they are in murky waters when deciding who to rent to, so much so that Parsons arranged to have a lawyer speak to the association about what is and isn't allowed.

John W. Phillips, president of the association, owns five rental units in Bay City.

Phillips said he checks the Michigan Public Sex Offender Registry "frequently" and has found it to be a valuable tool in weeding out undesirable renters.

He said he does not want convicted pedophiles living in a house where children also live.

"I don't care if someone was in prison," Phillips said. "But, if you were a child molester that's a good piece of information that a landlord should have in the back of their mind."

When Phillips finds the name of a current or prospective renter on the sex offender registry he makes sure to look up the details of the crime, as some people must be listed on the registry for lesser crimes, such as indecent exposure.

"If you're a child molester I don't really want you, but if you made a mistake, that's OK," he said.

Weighing the potential threat

Depending on the charge, sex offenders in Michigan stay on the registry for 25 years or life.

Research has shown that past criminal convictions are an indication that a person will commit another crime, according to the National Multi Housing Council, an association that advocates on behalf of the apartment industry.

Sex offenders especially are likely to repeat their crimes, research shows, making them particularly risky renters.

That, in fact, is the whole idea behind sex offender registries - that people, especially those with children, are aware when a known pedophile is living in their midst.

"These individuals pose a potential threat to offend again and if people knew who they were they could protect themselves a step further," said Charlotte Marshall, a Michigan State Police sex offender registration analyst.

Marshall's job is to make sure Michigan is in compliance with federal laws. She also answers a hotline.

"What I tell a lot of parents who are in a panic when they call the hotline is, 'At least you know about this one. ... You need to worry about the ones who have never been caught who you have no clue about."

Douglas A. Rise, director of the Bay City Housing Commission, said the standards are much more stringent in the public housing sector, where federal law prohibits renting to anyone whose name appears on the sex offender registry - even for minor offenses - or anyone who has any kind of prior drug conviction.

John Leppek, 48, has lived at Maloney Manor, a public housing complex at 210 Fitzhugh St., for about two years.

"They let them (sex offenders) move into neighborhoods so what's the difference?" Leppek said. "If I had little kids I would feel different. ... What are you going to do, stop them from moving in?"

Margaret Felan, 52, says yes.

"I don't want them around me," Felan said of sex offenders. "Why do you think they have to register? I want to be safe where I live. And I feel safe here."

Felan has lived at Maloney Manor for about five years and said what she likes most about living there is that it's quiet and safe.

She feels differently about people with past drug convictions.

"People change. They have a right to change. If they're in recovery I don't have a problem.

"But I wouldn't want a dealer in here. I'd want them taken out."

In Michigan some judges make it a condition of probation that a sex offender is not allowed to come within 100 feet of a school or playground.

But several states are now taking that a step further by establishing zones that will limit where sex offenders can live. In most, offenders cannot live within 100 to 300 feet of a school, day-care center, playground or other area where children may congregate.

In some communities the zones so closely overlap that where offenders can live is very limited.

Marshall, the state police analyst, called the plan radical and said zones may violate the Constitution and likely will be fought in the courts.

No hard and fast rules

A criminal history can help a landlord screen renters who could pose risks to property or other renters and employees.

And according to Jeanne Delgado, vice president of property management for the National Multi Housing Council, the courts have determined that landlords have a duty to keep their premises and their renters safe.

Delgado said landlords are on solid ground when they refuse to rent to those who are users of controlled substances, those who have been convicted of illegal manufacture or distribution of a controlled substance and sex offenders.

When deciding whether to rent to someone with a criminal history, Parsons said she looks at each person on an individual basis. She considers what the offense was and how long ago the person committed it. She has rented to those with records.

"If it's a misdemeanor like shoplifting ... many people have misdemeanors that wouldn't affect others or property," Parsons said. "You feel comfortable renting to them."

Alcoholics and drug addicts can be considered disabled if they have been through a treatment program and have quit using, Delgado said, and the Fair Housing Act protects renters against discrimination on the basis of a handicap.

"If they're going to be a current user they lose that protection," she said.

There are no fast and hard rules that determine whether a person has a substance abuse problem and landlords must use their best judgment, Delgado said, though landlords may want to ask prospective renters on applications if they have a problem.

That way, a problem drinker or drug addict may be evicted on the grounds that they lied on their application.

Rise said before anyone can rent one of Bay City's 722 units, the Housing Commission does checks of local court records in addition to a routine background check.

If anything suspicious shows up, the applicant must go to the Michigan State Police and be fingerprinted. Those prints are then run through the National Crime Information Center to check for offenses that occurred outside of Michigan.

"If you've got someone who's been arrested on several OUIL (operating under the influence of liquor) charges, that's a pretty good indication they have a substance abuse problem and that can directly affect other renters," Rise said.

Equal treatment

There is an appeals process for people who feel they were unfairly denied tenancy, Rise said. At an informal hearing an applicant can refute information or they can provide additional information.

If someone can provide proof that they have been through a substance abuse program and corrected a past drinking or drug problem, the Housing Commission may decide to rent to them.

The exception is a person who was arrested for drug activity while they lived in public housing - that person is denied tenancy for life, as is a sex offender.

Someone who lives in public housing can also be evicted for criminal activity, Rise said, because it violates the lease every renter must sign.

And the burden of proof is less. A person does not have to be convicted of a crime; police arrest reports are sufficient to evict someone, he said.

The eviction may be immediate - sometimes just seven days.

"If someone gets arrested for homicide you can bet they're not coming back on my property," Rise said.

When screening, landlords should have consistent policies that ensure equal treatment of all applicants. And it's a good idea to have an attorney look at those policies, Delgado said.

"The application process should be the same for everybody," she said. "There needs to be equal treatment across the board."

Parsons agrees.

"You really need to have your criteria down and have everyone put against it equally," Parsons said.

For her the bottom line is keeping the people that live near her rentals in mind when deciding whether or not to rent to someone.

"I found the best way to be a good landlord is to be an extremely good neighbor."