New York Attorney General Letitia James sues trailer park over substandard conditions
New York Attorney General Letitia James gained national prominence when her office won a nearly half-billion-dollar judgment against former President Donald Trump in a civil fraud case.
Trump isn't James only target, however, as she is now suing the owners of a mobile home park in Sullivan County.
Residents allegedly subjected to substandard living conditions
According to the Times Union, James has asked for $2.3 million in restitution on behalf of those living at River Valley Estates along with $300,000 in punitive damages.
Her lawsuit alleges that residents have been forced to contend with substandard living conditions along with illegal rent hikes.
Those residents include Gemma Beneduci and her husband Joe Ruffler, who say that they and their neighbors must spend $15 per week on bottled water as the water in their faucet is unsafe to drink.
What's more, the couple's lease agreement entitles them to a library, billiards room, as well as two swimming pools, none of which have been provided.
Yard said to have been flooded by raw sewage
"This is no way to live," Beneduci told the Union. The cancer sufferer also complained of inadequate street lights and road maintenance.
"I just want it taken care of. That’s all I want," Beneduci continued. "Because we are where we are with this, I do actually think that something will get done, I'm just hoping it’s sooner rather than later."
James' lawsuit contends that the park's "issues have fostered unmistakable distress among" its residents, who "have also developed a pervasive sense of resignation."
"One resident whose yard was regularly flooded with sewage was given a stick by a park employee and advised to use the stick to push the sewage down a nearby drain," it alleges.
The Union noted how Beneduci and Ruffler first contacted the attorney general's office in the spring of 2022, and it opened an investigation in October.
Appeals court skeptical about Trump's civil fraud judgment
Meanwhile, the attorney general appears headed for a setback in her case against Trump, as The New York Times reported late last month that an appeals court has treated his massive civil fraud judgment with "skepticism."
Among the doubters is Justice Peter H. Moulton, who was quoted as saying that he found "the immense penalty" in Trump's case "troubling."
Justice David Friedman spoke up as well, asking New York Deputy Solicitor General Judith N. Vale if she knew of any other case in which the attorney general had sued "to upset a private business transaction that was between equally sophisticated partners."
